Butterfly Effect The Second Chance At Life
by TheWorldTimeForgot
Summary: Its not every day you are informed of your death by a man in a tacky suit. When one of the Grim Reapers makes a mistake, and sends Luso to an alternate world exactly like a popular video game, What will he do? Going back isn't really an option anymore, is it? How many ways can one person screw up the future? How many ways can someone get injured?
1. Young Light

**This is a remake of my Old Story, The Butterfly effect, with hopefully better chapters. So if you hated my stories before, please at least give this one a shot. Thank you.**

**Anyways-**

**I do not own anything, Everything belongs to Intelligent systems.**

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"I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens."  
― Woody Allen

* * *

"Huh? Where am I?"

"You have died, and are awaiting judgment."

"Is there any reason why I don't have a body?"

"Did I forget to mention you died, Luke Heartwell?"

"Huh?"

"Luke Heartwell, Asian, captain of the Kendo team, black belt, plays the cello, don't think you can sneak out of this one. By lying or by skill you will not escape death. Get used to it. Cry all you want. Nothing is going to change. And if I hear a request for a chess board, you are going down."

"My name is Luso. That's not my name! There has got to be some mistake!"

"..."

"..."  
The world reformed before him. The voice that had spoken was no longer a voice, but a youthful looking business man. In his right ear was a small dark blue earpiece and in his left hand was a small tablet computer.

At the same time, his own body was being formed from the dust surrounding the area. Piece by piece came together and formed into a new whole. When his eyes were formed he could see. When his arms and legs were made he could walk and clench his fists. The body he had was new, and completely alien to him. It was strange.

The man sighed and fiddled with his tablet. Without a hint of emotion, he said. "Explain yourself, Luke or Ludo, or Luso, or whatever your name is."  
"Can you explain why it took so long to get me a body first?" The boy said with a snarl.

"Don't be arrogant, in thinking you are alive mortal. All that is, is a spiritual body, I can dispel it in a blink of an eye. I need to see your body to read your body language, I don't want to make a hasty judgment. Repeat what you said, and don't think about escaping."

"My name is Luso, Luke is my neighbor, Although I do practice swordsmanship as a martial art, I am only a red belt not a black. I don't play the cello but I do play the Violin."

The businessman was silent, scouring for any trace of the boy lying. Unable to find a single one, he snapped and shouted angrily. "You're lying!"  
"I'm not! Admit it when you make a mistakes!" Luso said indignantly.  
"Oh? And a human is lecturing me? Like you haven't done anything like this before!"  
"You're sending an innocent to the afterlife! I a human! Jerk! I DIED because of you."  
"You think that's bad huh? Death?" The businessman shouted. "I'm going to get fired because of you! My boss is going to use the sickle that I use to reap souls on me!"  
"Wait you REAP souls? You're a grim reaper?"

"Angel of death is the corre-"

Luso burst into laughter.

"The grim reaper, wears a pinstriped suit, and is worried about his boss killing him!"

The man started to grow red in the face and shouted, "This is no time to be joking around fool! I'm going to lose my job, and you are already dead! What are you going to do about my job?"

Luso shrugged and rolled his eyes. "There is no need for anyone to know about his, you know. You could probably stick my soul back into my body. "

"Are you really going to be flippant with death? My lord in heaven, make the humans more polite! The problem is, Luke Heartwell was supposed to die in a car accident!"

"I don't have a license! I'm fifteen! My parents didn't want me to get a permit!"

"That isn't the problem nitwit! The problem is that you have a prearranged death, and I already set it up. Here! I'll show you!"

The reaper snapped his fingers, and the pure white scenery changed to an image of a street. His mother's sedan was smashed into a blue Prius, the front bumper crumpled. The window in front of the driver was shattered, apparently from the driver being thrown from the vehicle, and the broken glass lay across the front side of the broken car.

Lying cold next to a tree smeared with flesh and blood was an almost unrecognizable corpse. Luso covered his mouth in dismay before starting to cry.

The reaper tapped his tablet's display twice before rattling off a bunch of statistics. "Head turned back 176 degrees, arms broken, ribs crushed, broken and scattered into various organs, heart and spleen ruptured, and digestive tract exploded. Although I can place a soul in a body, that thing isn't going to hold one any time soon."

In reaction, Luso turned around and yanked the reaper's tie. The blue silk tie was made of the finest materials. Even under the huge amount of pressure it didn't snap.  
"Hey stop it! Stop it! You're choking me big guy! I can put your soul into a new body, stay calm!" The reaper said frantically.  
"Calm! You sent my body driving in a car at god knows what speed-  
"184 miles per hour. Without a seat belt." The reaped interrupted.

"And made it look like that! And you want me to be calm!" The boy roared. He drew his hand back to punch the reaper in the face, but before he could the man started to protest again.

"Like I said! Wait! Just stick around with me, and when a millionaire or someone like that is assigned to me I can stick you in his body. I know you want your body back, but that's impossible. I'll do my best for you, okay?"

Luso hesitated for a second before preparing to smack the reaper. Then he decided that despite the efforts that the servant of god was making, he still deserved to be punched.

"Wait!"

"What?"

"You wouldn't hit a guy with glasses would you?" The reaper said while slipping on a pair.

Luso's grip on the reaper's collar tightened.

"Oh you would. You dirty, rotten, ungrateful moron! "

"I am not ungrateful!"  
"Then let me go! I'll get you the greatest body!"  
For a few minutes Luso and the reaper struggled. Then the reaper's headset vibrated softly.  
"Hold up, I got to take this call."

Luso backed away, and waited as the Reaper started to pale, stutter and mumble as he spoke with the person on the phone.

"We have a problem."

"What!?"

"Inspection, my boss declared a random inspection of the workers to make sure we aren't soul smuggling."

"What is the punishment?"

"A thousand years of suffering. And I lose my job. Oh my God, I'm going to get fired."

"They can replace grim reapers that easily?"

"There are more reapers than you can count. We do have to manage every death. I can be replaced as fast as one of your McDonald's employees. It just pays better, and I get dental, don't forget dental."

"When is the inspection?"

"At lunch time. I have three possible candidates for you to chose from before inspection starts. Keep in mind that I have to take them in the manner recorded."

Luso covered his face with his hands.

"Alright tell me"

The reaper searched through his pockets and pulled out a Smartphone. He scrolled through a list on the screen and said, "your options are a homeless man, who gets stabbed in the street, a citizen of the red light district who... Let's skip that option actually. There is a third option but the world that particular death is in is completely different."

"Those aren't really great options. What is the third?" Luso said with a frown.

"You mentioned you can wield a sword right?"

"Yeah, I can."

The angel of death sighed, and said "Then you have a chance, there is a bandit who died from a fever in the parallel universe of Ylisse. It's an medieval world, and on the brink of war. If you want I can give you that body but there will be a huge culture shock. No electricity, less technology, so on so forth."

Luso nodded, "Will I be able to speak the language?"

"Yes, if the previous person was able to then you will. The data transfers."

"I'll do it."

"I'll get the necessary materials. I'll send you there, check out the body."

Space and time were once again warped, inverted and broken to pieces. The road on which the lost soul was standing on vanished and was replaced by a rudimentary camp on the forest.

A series of tents were haphazardly placed around a series of trees, and a cluster or men were conversing amongst themselves, most complaining about insects or the humid weather.

One man, evidently the leader of the group turned to a man wearing a pointed wizard hat, and said "My friend, tell me how this war cry sounds, does it sound like a bandit's. Or how about this laugh? Does it sound perverse and dirty enough to be a barbarian?"

The man then proceeded to laugh in a disgusting manner. It was so realistic that the man in the hat flinched and took a step back.

The man said, "It's perfect leader, those Ylisseans will be sure it's a disgusting bandit. But I have one question."

"What is it Issaic?"

"Why is Gangrel doing this? If he wants a war, then why not just send in the army and strike? Is there a reason he has us attack ordinary people?"

The leader of the bandits looked at his feet and groaned.

"I don't know. But it is not my concern Issaic. I am more worried about the soldiers that are suffering due to this strategy. We can't have any clerics, so we are all suffering. We are almost out of vulneraries and Matt is almost dead. His fever is picking up. If we had just one damn healer this wouldn't be happening!" The leader of the bandits lifted up a tent flap, and showed Issaic something.

Luso drifted over to where the bandits were walking and peered inside.

A brown haired man was gasping in pain, his face completely red from heat. He groaned slightly and rolled on his side. In Luso's opinion, the soldier looked tall, and strong. But all the strength in the world was useless against a disease.

"I don't think he will last much longer sir."

"Call the men together, let's raid early. We need some vulneraries."

The magician nodded, and started to rally people together in the center of the camp. As they were doing so, Luso drifted over to the feverish man and waited.  
"Matt I think right?"  
"God? Naga? Grima?"

"Don't worry it isn't so bad." The grim reaper said while materializing into the dimension.

"Reaper!" Luso said with alarm. The man had come holding a sword as long as he was tall. It was black and shimmered in the dusky light that faded through the tent fabric.  
"Rest in peace, Matthew. You have done enough for Plegia. Your friends in a few weeks will make us work overtime on the Ylissians."  
Then he tapped the sword on the dying man's chest. A small blue clock face appeared where the sword had touched, the hands only five minutes away.

When the clock's hands hit zero, Matthew's eyes closed he died with a smile.  
Luso raised his hand and touched the dead man's face, his fingers going straight through the man body.  
"How come he died so peacefully, and I died like that?"

The reaper glared at Luso for a few seconds and turned away. He removed a small marble from his front pocket and rolled it around in his right hand.

"What is that?"

"This is an Aum crystal. It disturbs a body's reaction to a spiritual presence so your soul doesn't get spit out within two seconds. Don't worry, you won't have to live with it, the body will get accustomed to a parasite soul after all. So after a while, the body will learn to put up with your leaching off it, and stealing it's vital-"  
"Can you please not speak of me like a flea or something?" Luso said with a grimace.

"Fine. Good luck Luso, sorry about screwing up."

The reaper slipped off the Myrmidon shirt and pushed it into the man's chest. A quarter of the dark blue crystal poked out of the man's chest after it was inserted. After it was, Luso touched the crystal with his forehead. His ethereal form was sucked into the crystal, and once again Luso had control of a body.

A new adventure was beginning. And a whole new story would awaken. The butterfly's wings had flapped, and the tempest was well on its way.

"UUWAAAAGGHH!"

The first experience he felt in the body of the bandit was pain. It was a track record Luso had no intention of keeping. Unfortunately for the plucky swordsman, it was to be something that would be following him around his entire god damned life.

The fever that had killed its host, still raged within the body causing nausea and vomiting.  
This adventure was not off on a good start.  
The Reaper wrinkled his nose then walked over and touched Luso on his back. A dark blue wave of energy rippled across his back, destroying the pathogens infecting his body.  
"That's the last favor I can do for you Luso, Here's a tip. Don't focus on things like walking and the like. The previous owner already has it down. The more you concentrate the harder it gets."  
Luso nodded in thanks as he watched the ethereal spirit vanish into thin air. With the sickness gone he was feeling better, but waves of nausea were still reverberating in his body. For about two minutes he stared into the tent ceiling wondering what he was going to do now in the strange new world. During the midst of his ponderings a boy his age ran quickly into the medical tent. He wore a cloak like the magicians in old stories and somehow seemed oddly familiar.  
The blonde smiled cheerily, and said. "Hey Matt, how are you feeling? I ran back as fast as fast as I found medication for your sickness. "  
"I'm feeling better Issaic. I think I am all cured actually." Luso said nonchalantly. "See? No fever!"  
Then he processed what he just said. How the heck did he know him?

Issaic touched Luso's forehead with the palm of his hand. The boy bit his lip for a few minutes as he made sure that the fever had vanished.

"Fine I guess you are well enough. I'll take you where the others are. Just wait, I'll get your armor."

Issaic returned with a set of armor traditionally worn by mercenaries. It was leather with metal plates interwoven, and had a small detachable shield on the left shoulder. The armor only took a few minutes to put on with Issaic's help, and was actually not that heavy.  
"Here's your sword. Standard Iron." Issaic said while dropping the sheathed weapon on Luso's back. "And follow me. The others will be thrilled to see you back! Let's fight side by side like we always do! "

The magician removed an elfire tome from the inner pocket of his robe and started walking towards the woods.  
Luso paused for a second and glanced around the tent. The tent did not only hold the sick, but also a good portion of non perishable goods. And lying on top of the pile was a small blank book, and a katana.

The boy grabbed the both before rushing off after Issaic.

"So where are we going?"

"Aren village. Our colleagues are performing a raid. After that, in a few days we'll hit Southtown. Let's hope that we aren't too late."

Luso stopped running at the word raid. Right. This was a bandit's body.

"Issaic, remind me again. How long have we known each other?"

The magician stopped and bit his lip. "Umm, what brought this on Matt? We grew up together, in the same village, so I guess since birth? Well we did separate for a few years when we went to different refugee camps."  
"Refugee camps?" Luso said uneasily. For some reason with just the sound of that word, a spot just below his right shoulder started to ache.  
Issaic sat down on a nearby stump.  
"You were only three, but you should still remember it if the camp was anything like mine. I was four and I still recall everything about it. Those damn Ylissians burning and pillaging everything, men worse than monsters forcing us to move every three weeks to prevent them from finding us. Every day, they would call men out from the camp and arm them. The call to arms I suppose. It's ironic, the call that took my parents, both of our parents actually, the call I feared, I eventually answered. Living in the rebuilt village for the rest of my life didn't really suit me right?"  
Issaic chuckled and flipped the pages of his book and thoughtlessly glanced over them.  
So the bandits had their own motivations for doing what they did. Luso bit his lip. Banditry was wrong. He had no intention of starting off his new life with crime.  
"Issaic, What if I told you a I became a whole new person. " Luso said carefully. "Due to a certain encounter with death?"  
"Eh? What do you mean Matt?"  
"I don't think that doing this kind of thing is right. I don't want to kill people. I mean, Ylissians are people too right?"  
Issaic was completely taken aback. The man shook his head and said. "But what about revenge? Didn't the Ylissians kill your father? What happened to that? Are you going to forgive them for what they did to you?! What they did to us!"

"... Are we going to kill more people then? Kill innocents for innocent blood? You are a good person from what I've seen, stop doing this Issaic. Does rampaging through towns give you your revenge?" Luso pleaded.  
The magician closed his eyes and clenched his fists tightly. "I don't know."  
The two had been unknowingly walking towards the burning village the whole time.  
But now they were at the gates of the town, both of them had to make a choice.  
"Issaic, I am going to stop the bandits."  
"Matthew! They are our allies! They fought alongside US! How can you say such a thing? And even if you could fight them, they still outnumber you! Are you in your right mind?"  
Luso silently unsheathed the killing edge he had taken. "Who knows? Probably not. This all feels real, but maybe this is all just a hallucination? Or perhaps I am already dead and this an illusion? I may think this is real but in my heart I still believe this all fake. Everybody knows that if you die in a dream, you wake up."  
"This isn't a joke Matt!"  
"Will you fight along with me Issaic? Or will you fight against me? Make your choice! I'm not spending my second chance at life as a bandit! I'm going to do the right thing!"  
Issaic closed his eyes and slumped against the village wall.  
"I can't. I'm sorry Matt. I can't do that."  
Luso pointed his weapon at the mage. "I tried to convince you, I'd rather have you as an ally, but if that's the case then we will be enemies. I will not degrade myself to being a bandit! Prepare yourself!"  
"Matthew?"  
"Here I come!"  
Luso raised his sword over his head and slashed downwards towards the Plegian mage. The metal sword cut Issaic's cheek painting a thin bloody line. Issaic leaped backwards to rush out of range before Luso could swing again. "What in the name of Grima are you doing!"  
Luso paused for a second, before tensing his legs for a charge. "I'm going to do the right thing!" The killing edge flew forward as the mercenary charged towards the magician, its tip pointing towards the robed man's chest.  
"Ngh, Damn it! Burn like the Sun! Elfire!"

* * *

**Please review if you enjoyed the story. Give any feedback you want, any review is helpful. And if you don't want to log in, I set Anon review up, so you can always do that.**

**I hope that you will read more!**


	2. The Merchant of Southtown

**Sorry about the long wait. The file system in which I store my ideas and stuff crashed deleting a lot of stuff. I had to rewrite everything. Anyways, this will update more frequently I hope.**

**Usual disclaimer, yadda, yadda, I don't own anything, it belongs to intelligent systems.**

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"_Go with me to a notary, seal me there_

_Your single bond; and, in a merry sport,__  
__If you repay me not on such a day,__  
__In such a place, such sum or sums as are__  
__Express'd in the condition, let the forfeit__  
__Be nominated for an equal pound__  
__Of your fair flesh, to be cut off and taken__  
__In what part of your body pleaseth me."_

Shylock-The Merchant of Venice

* * *

It's warm.  
I wonder where I am?  
Did I really die again?  
Am I waking up now?  
Luso's eyes opened slowly and gazed at the moon. Its silver light illuminated the forest, and gave the waxy leaves a dull glow.  
"I'll have to admit, Your resistance to magic is still terrible." Issaic muttered while peeling off a bandage on Luso's arm. Although it was covered with burn blisters and frankly looked terrible, it was numb and actually didn't hurt that much. Issaic dipped a fresh bandage in a vial and tightly bound the wound. Then it hurt like the dickens, it was like stubbing your toe on an iron knife, heated in the fires of Hell.  
"EEEEYYYYAAAAHH!"

"Be quiet you big baby, I could have just poured this vulnerary on top of your arm, but then it would form scar tissue. It may hurt more but it's better to dilute it and apply it slowly." Issaic muttered while giving the bandage one last time. "Also when did you get a chest piercing? You said you'd never anything of the kind, remember? Do you mind if I see it?"  
Luso sat up and felt his chest. The tiny crystal trembled as he tapped it gently. If it shattered, he died.  
"Don't touch it!"  
Issaic shook his head. Then he sighed and took out a small leather pack from behind a tree. "Ngh stingy. Anyways, here's a bag. It has a medium bullion, more than enough to last a few months, a map of the nearby area, and some clothes. Take it and go north. Go straight to Ylisstol and keep on going if you want to avoid our squad. "  
Luso sat up and grabbed the backpack that Issaic was offering him.  
"Why are you helping me? Didn't I try to kill you?"  
"We are friends aren't we? Friends have to trust each other, and so I trust that you have some reason why you did what you did. Come on Matt, let's go, I know a short cut through the wood's foot paths so we can go much faster."  
Luso slung the pack over his shoulders and followed the magician. The dirt path road had dried out from a heat wave and released huge piles of dust with each step. Luso coughed and sputtered, but Issaic simple carried on.  
But no matter how far they wandered neither one could see a city.  
"Hey Issaic." Luso said softly. "Doesn't this place seem familiar?"  
The magician slumped on the ground and glanced back at his map. "It's strange, we should be at least at Southtown."  
The two looked over the map, before Luso flipped the map over. "We're lost aren't we."  
"At least it was a nice day for a walk." Issaic said with a sigh. "Screw this, let's just wander around until we find a road Matt."  
"Issaic?"  
"Yes?"  
"Stop calling me Matt. From this day on, I am Luso. I'm wiping my previous life away, and starting a new one." Luso grinned and laughed nervously.  
"That sounds foreign, where did you hear that one?"  
"... I first heard it a while ago from people far, far away when I was very, very young." Luso muttered. "Yeah. We have no idea where we are going, do we."  
Issaic scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Not a clue ."  
A sharp growling noise suddenly came from behind them.  
With turning around, Issaic asked quietly. "Is that a bear?"  
Luso turned slightly around and looked. A monster with blackish brown fur at seven feet tall towered over them, with a pair of two cubs next to her side.  
"Yes. It is Issaic." The mercenary said in a slightly shaky voice.  
"Do you want to run or climb a tree?"  
"I heard that if you stand tall and stare at it in the eyes, that bears will back down. Let's see if that works."  
Luso then proceeded to fly through the air and smashed into a tree. The bear roared in triumph, and moved in front of its cubs. It snarled at the two petrified men.  
Luso sat up, his head still ringing from the impact."Ugh. It hurts."  
"What should we do?"  
Issaic and Luso scrambled to their feet as the bear started charging.  
"Run! Run! Run for your lives!"  
The bear smashed through rotting wood and dense forest like a boulder. Nothing could stand in its path, as it ravaged through the woods chasing after the creatures that threatened it's cubs.  
"I don't think climbing a tree will help!" Luso cried as he crashed through a tapestry of branches.  
"But this might! Wind!"  
A gale whipped up around the magician and fired toward the beast, ripping through the wood and shattering branches.  
Unfortunately it did absolutely nothing to the bear. The magical force faded away on impact, and only served to piss it off.  
"You're useless!" Luso cried as the enraged creature rushed towards him.  
"I forgot bears have almost as high resistance as a Pegasus! It's not my fault!"  
The two men burst out of the forest and landed on a gravel road. Upon seeing the forest end, the bear snarled at them and turned around.  
But before their eyes was something far more terrifying then any woodland creature.  
A young red haired woman holding a sword with a jagged blade shaped like a lightning bolt.  
"Hello, my name is Anna! And if my eyes don't deceive me that particular killing edge was an item stolen by bandits. Could you explain how it ended up in your hands?"

* * *

Luso and Issaic were kneeling on the side of the road. Issaic was crying softly, and Luso was biting his lip to keep himself from doing the same.  
The crimson haired merchant smiled cheekily as she fiddled with her sword. "I don't want you to lower your arms. Keep then up straight with the tips pointing towards the sky. You thieves only maintained this position for an hour, I want at least twenty more minutes."  
"Please." Issaic groaned slightly. "It hurts, can you just let us-"  
"If you lower your arms, I'll show you that prices aren't the only thing I can cut in half."  
Luso closed his eyes and begged. "If that weapon I took when I left the bandit group was so expensive allow us to make restitution."  
"This gold should do." Anna said with a cheerful grin as she hefted the bullion out of Luso's backpack.  
"Wait!" Issaic cried out. "The fair market price of a killing edge is three thousand gold! That is easily five! This is highway robbery!"  
"I loaned you an object, and now I'm getting interest. Now normally I charge about twenty five percent interest per day, and since it was missing for a month, I believe that you should be giving more. Your cape has a silver clasp doesn't it Magician?"  
"Umm."  
"Your clothes. Give them to me."  
Seriously? Was this woman a terminator?  
Issaic glanced at Luso for a second before slowly taking off his cloak. In the second they made eye contact Luso somehow knew what Issaic wanted him to do.  
He wanted him to knock her down. He wanted him to tackle a TERMINATOR.  
"Fine take my cloak!" Issaic hurled his cloak at the merchant, the heavy fabric wrapping around the lady.  
Luso rushed forward, tackled Anna and knocked her over.  
Issaic ran a few steps and grabbed his spell tome. "Matthew run!" The boy screamed before running down the road as fast as he could.  
Luso let go of still struggling merchant and grabbed the iron sword and killing edge before escaping.  
Within five seconds of their escape the two men saw a red headed blur hurtling towards them. A hail of lightning bolts fell from the sky, raining down upon the two fleeing men.  
"Augh! She's coming! Issaic hit her with the strongest wind magic you can!"  
"But those are for destroying armored knights! To strike at even the dread fighters, warriors who can tank even the strongest of magic!"  
"It doesn't matter! There is a tank coming right at us right now."  
A green aura whirled around Issaic, as the man stopped and turned around.  
Three blades of wind, two lightning bolts and a ball of fire materialized behind the magician.  
"Take this! All the magic in my body, go and crush my enemy!"  
A magnificent explosion rocked the ground causing a massive plume of dust to scatter through the sky.  
In the center of the scorched earth was a very pissed off merchant. The lady now twisted by rage charged straight at them albeit slower than before.  
"Is that cow made of adamantium or something!" A hand clasped around Luso's mouth.  
"Argh! Anna don't eat me! I won't taste good enough to sell off as beef!"  
Issaic shushed the mercenary, and forced his fingers into his mouth to prevent him from talking- or rather screaming in terror.  
He quickly dragged the mercenary behind a nearby tree as the merchant wandered through the streets.  
The two men didn't dare to breathe as they heard Anna pass by.  
"That was terrifying." Luso groaned as he peeked out from the side of the tree.  
Issaic was still shivering in terror. He chattered out,  
"I can see smoke. I-I-I guess we can just keep on going that way."  
The rest of the walk to southtown was filled with silence except for a short conversation with the locals, and continued until they reached the market place.  
Two times on their walk, they had to hide in bushes or behind trees to avoid a red headed woman. Although in the end one of them caught the two of them. Surprisingly they weren't shanked and rather, much to their confusion were dragged cheerfully off to see a stall. Luso theorized that Anna was either bipolar, or had multiple personality disorder as this one was polite, kind, and even quite funny. Issaic had hidden away some items in a pocket under his shirt and Luso had a small pouch hidden in his shield so they weren't exactly broke. But they weren't rich either, having only weapons and enough food to last a week or so.

"I never thought Ylisse would be like this. Everyone is really polite, except for the travelling merchants but they don't count."  
Issaic said quietly while looking through a pile of spell tomes.  
"Excuse me." An orange haired man chewing on a pastry bumped in between Luso and Issaic before wandering off.  
"Of course, there are always the people that do that kind of thing." The magician muttered with a sigh. "I'll go find us an Inn. Can you pass me 3 gold?"  
"Uh sure!" Luso rummaged through his bag looking for the pouch. He swore that he had it in his inside pocket, but it wasn't there. Where was it?  
"Issaic! It's missing!" Luso said in a panic. "Seriously Ma-Luso? You probably just lost it in that bag of yours. We'll use mine."  
Then Issaic checked his pockets. Every last coin, as well as a cookie they had bought earlier, was stolen. "What the? It's all gone! No way! How does that happen! Were we robbed?"  
Wait a second. When could they have been robbed?  
Luso whirled around and chased after the orange haired man.  
"Stop Thief!"

"I'm sorry Issaic, I lost him in the crowd. "

The magician broke down crying again."This much be divine punishment for turning against Plegia. Unless this is a bad story, meeting a bear, getting almost killed by an attractive lady, and getting pick-pocketed fifty gold is completely implausible. Where will we sleep? In the streets? This is the last straw! Lord Grima take this pitiful soul as tribute." Issaic grabbed a knife and pointed at his throat.  
Wait what? Hold on.  
Luso reached out and tried to grab Issaic's wrist but was too late. He was beaten too it.  
A nearby village maiden grabbed the magician's wrist. "Wait! If you have no place to go, you can rest in our home."  
Issaic touched the knife's tip with his finger. The blade slid back in its hilt. He then laughed and said. "Would I really commit suicide over an inn? You know me better then that Luso. Miss, were you serious in letting the two of us stay at your house? For free? Why would you do that for us?"  
"Sleeping in the streets is dangerous even if you have weapons. There have been bandits about. I mean Aren village was attacked just a little while ago. Survivors came in just a few hours ago. "  
Issaic and Luso awkwardly stared at each other. Issaic bit his lip, turned around and started whistling.  
"Um hello?" The village girl asked.  
"Uh sure, we'll take up that offer." Luso said softly.  
"No, actually we'll be fine. Thank you though." Issaic muttered, his face downcast while pushing Luso back.  
"If you are afraid you'll intrude, I will assure you it will be fine." The maiden said with a slight grin. "Our house is the one on that corner, just over there."  
"No it will be okay."  
He grabbed the Mercenary by his shirt and dragged him along with him into an alleyway.  
The moment they were alone, Issaic said quietly. "I would have killed her."  
"What? I feel like I'm missing something here."  
"If I didn't leave, in the next raid we would have done, I would have killed her, or perhaps our more vulgar allies would have captured her."  
Luso quickly caught on. "So is that why you refused her help? You felt guilty?"  
"I don't know."  
"Just because you feel guilty doesn't change the fact that with the night comes thieves and murderers. Lets accept the nice lady's offer and pay her back, see?"  
The sky started to turn orange as the sun started to set.  
"Issaic, come on. We can pay her back. We will, don't worry and just ask her for one night in her house."  
"Fine. But I don't feel that this is a good idea. Ylissians are not the most compassionate people from my understanding."  
The two men wandered over to a small wooden house, and knocked on the door.  
"Hello." The maiden said with a smile as she opened the door.

The mattress that the two men were given wasn't much. It was a bed of straw with a linen sheet covering it.  
Although much softer then the stones on the street, it was not what Luso would call comfortable in his perspective.  
No matter what position he lay down in, it always jabbed him somewhere with a sharp piece of straw.  
Eventually Luso just sat up and walked towards the door.  
Issaic was already on the other side of that door staring up at the night sky.  
Issaic smiled warmly. "Not all Ylissians are bad people."  
"Huh?"  
"I was a bit cruel right? Assuming they were all horrible. But they are just like us Plegians. Some nice, some cruel, some simply terrifying. If the bandits came, I don't know what I'd do. It's funny what one day can do right?"  
Luso murmured, "yup. You were. The stars are pretty tonight right?"  
"Yes Matt, they are beautiful."  
A thin haze of smoke covered up a constellation. Then it was followed by another puff, then another.  
"That's a smoke signal! The bandits will come tomorrow!" Issaic cried in shock.


	3. Strength In Numbers

**I do not own FireEmblem, or any other Series by Intelligent Systems. **

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**"For the likes of you, the path to happiness is one mean son of a bitch of a path."**  
**― Dean Koontz, Dead and Alive**_  
_

* * *

Luso slowly sat up and grabbed his sword. "Damn it! Ugh. What are we going to do?"

"It's our time to choose, what path we will follow." Issaic said with a frown. "Whether we betray our mother country or not. If we choose to fight for innocents or Plegia."

"Who gives a damn?" Luso said with a smile. "All we were going to do is drive off some bandits right?"

Issaic noted. "We should go around and inform every person in the town to go to a safe place, preferably not flammable buildings."

"Too slow." Luso said with a smile, before screaming put the window.

"HEY! BANDITS ARE COMING! ESCAPE TO ANY BUILDING MADE OF STONE AND ARM YOURSELVES!"

The sun rose into the sky while a panicked crowd of villagers grabbed sticks and pitchforks and huddled into churches or walled houses of nobles. About half of the villagers in town believed the message. The other half thought it was a hoax and didn't bother. The other half frankly didn't care even when they heard crashing sounds against the gates, attributing it to the sound of the wind.

An hour after dawn, the village gates shattered from axe blows. A small squadron of bandits, maybe around twenty or so entered the small city.

When the bandits broke into Southtown, they were met by a pair of men waiting for them. Behind those two men were the village militia, who were haphazardly armed with spears.

The very presence of a force intimidated the bandits, as they were used to striking before any army could rally and fight back.

However the bandits did not fear.

Even if there was a militia, the odds were still for them, with all of the soldiers fighting for Ylisse totaling only seven in number.

Many of them were actually chuckling when they approached the small army.

"You two!" A bandit said. "Aren't you Matthew and-"

"Luso and Issaic, freelancers for hire. All similarities to people you may know, such as former comrades or bandits are purely coincidental." Luso said flatly.

"Freelancers? Was that seriously the best thing you could come up with?"

Issaic said with a sigh. "Let's just get this over with, I dislike doing this to people I know."

"Wait a sec! Time out! Let's talk this civilly. If you guys lay down your arms and join our glorious bandit révolution-" The bandit shouted mockingly.

"Èlfire" Issaic muttered angrily.

The bandit having horrid resistance exploded into a tower of flame.

"Here I come!" Luso rushed forward and slashed the screaming man across the chest with his iron sword causing a stream of blood to spurt from his body.

Luso's arms trembled when the first bandit fell to the ground dead. But right as he killed the bandit three more appeared where he fell. He had no time to consider anything, including remorse.

"Hey! How dare you! He called a time out!"

The first raised his axe and charged straight at the mercenary.

Sheer terror forced adrenaline into Luso's blood. The world seemed to slow down as he mentally reviewed everything he knew about swordsmanship.

The back of the sword's hilt should be one fist's distance from the navel. Bend your arms slightly to avoid being too tense. Raise the left heel and put your center of balance forward. Stand up straight, and your chest should always face the opponent. Raise the tip of the sword and keep it pointed towards the enemy's throat.

Luso snapped into the stance and waited for the bandit to approach.

Right on queue bandit rushed forward letting out a hardy war cry and danced to the left holding his battle axe up high.

Luso turned with the muscular man and kept the sword pointed at his enemy's throat. As long as it was there, it was impossible for the bandit to rush forward to attack and not be stabbed. He had the reach advantage. There was no way the bandit could attack him without getting him getting the chance of the first strike.

I can do this.

Then the bandit grabbed the tip of his sword with an armored gauntlet.

Crap.

The odious man yanked the sword back, and slashed sideways at Luso, giving him glancing blow on his armor. Luso could feel something in his body snap from the impact, but he had no time to feel it with his hands and see if any ribs were either bruised or snapped.

Instead he pulled on his sword and tore it from the bandit's grip before slashing the weapon alongside his enemy's waist.

A thin red line appeared on the bandit's stomach, causing the man to buckle and groan.

But instead of falling, the man once again raised his weapon to strike.

The axe flew down again towards the swordsman, this time cutting into Luso's shoulder. The armor buckled and groaned, eventually shattering under the axe's pressure. A wave of pain flowed as the metal plate bent and stuck into his arm.

The bandit in a complete fury raised his axe again. It was kill or be killed. He'd be damned before he died here.

Luso twisted his sword out of its awkward position, grabbed the flat of the blade midway to the tip and stabbed the bandit in the chest.

As the bandit gurgled, trying to breathe, Luso twisted the sword with a sickening squelch causing the poor man to writhe and scream.

The sound was terrifying and rattled the killer. The groan was enough to make Luso's stomach churn in guilt. With the howl still echoing through his ears, Luso turned to face his left.

A swordsman materialized next to him, seeming to appear out of nowhere. An iron sword whistled as it flew towards the mercenary's neck. Then it dropped off. Two militiamen had impaled the bandit with bronze spears, causing guts to splatter onto the street when they retrieved their weapons.

"We are here too! Don't leave us out!" The first villager said with a smile.

The second nodded before slurring."Just because we ain't mercs doesn't mean we can't fight dang it."

Luso stared at the second member of the militia for a few seconds before the man confessed. "Sorry, I thought it would be funny."

"No time for jokes. They're almost here!" The third member of the Militia cried out.

The fourth member came running back towards the main group. "Guys! The bandit's are torching the buildings on the left side of the street! Some civilians haven't evacuated! Let's go and save them!"

"Not now! Lock shields! Here they come!"

As four bandits charged towards the group, the four militiamen and Luso stuck out their weapons out and jabbed quickly towards their enemies. Three of the bandit's were taken down by the attacks. One however did not fall. The lone surviving bandit threw his axe and hit one of the militia men in the chest.

The soldier screamed as the weapon embedded itself into his lungs and killed him almost instantly.

"Thunder!" Issaic cried. A bolt of lightning cracked through the sky, coming with a vicious amount of force to destroy its target. The bandit's eyes widened in pain as the lightning smashed into his chest. During the bandit's screams and thrashing about, the axe he had carried was flung haphazardly.

"Look out!" In the next second Luso found himself pushing Issaic against the wall, with an axe imbedded next to his head.

"Reinforcements are arriving! I don't know if they are friendly or hostile. We need to hurry to intercept them!" One of the militia men shouted while beckoning then forward.

"We're coming! Don't worry!"

"Remember, we face practiced thieves and brigands. They will give us no quarter. Show no mercy in this battle Robin."

A brown haired knight murmured while polishing his silver lance.

"I understand Frederick. I will take that into account."

An albino man said with a smile.

"Hmm? What's this? There is blood in the streets, is there already force fighting the bandits? Perhaps we could recruit them as allies in this battle. But not right now! Strike every opponent from all directions! Never fight alone! Block off the paths to Lissa so she can't get hurt and last but not least don't over extend yourselves! Let's go!"

Frederick rode out first. He rushed next to the side of a small house all while spinning a silver lance over his head and impaling a Myrmidon.

Robin and a blue haired man named Chrom drew swords and rushed off in the other direction to block an alleyway containing two axe wielders.

"Damn it! We're being flanked!" One of the bandits said angrily.

"Shut up and fight!" The other hissed before swinging his axe widely.

Chrom ducked under the first stroke before stabbing the bandit in the chest. As the bandit knelt from the pain, the prince raised his sword above his head and cut downwards causing a head to go bouncing across the cobblestones.

On the other hand, Robin was hit by the flat of the axe of the second bandit and went flying.

The tactician, now halfway buried in a market basket full of apples threw his sword to the ground, removed a book from god knows where, and raised his hand. A bolt of lightning arced from his fingertips and smashed into the bandit's face causing him to fall to the ground twitching.

"Now that's strategy." The tactician said with a smirk.

"You're a riot Robin. Get out of the apples." Chrom deadpanned.

The tactician pushed himself out of the basket and picked up the bronze sword off the ground.

As he leaned forward, the windows of the house next to them shattered.

A magician dressed in a red cloak climbed through the broken window and stepped firmly onto the street.

"No... It can't be..."

Issaic said as he eyed the prince. He removed his tome and cried out. "Hey! Blue headed son of a hamster! Take this! Thund- Hey!"

A mercenary grabbed the back of the magician's cloak and yanked it back causing the magician to sputter and gag.

"Those people don't look like bandits Issaic." Luso muttered darkly.

"Let go of me! You know what that person has done to me! What his fath-"

"Shut up Issaic! Isn't like you, let's just fight the bandits and whatever conflict you have with him can be settled after right?"

Luso let go of Issaic's cloak and sheathed his sword.

"Hey you" Chrom said to Luso. "Is it fair to assume that you are fighting the same enemy as us?"

"It is fair." Luso smiled.

"Then fight alongside us for this battle. Every sword in our ranks counts." The prince tapped the side of his sword against Luso's.

"Strength in numbers. Okay! I'll do it! Count me in!"

Issaic hissed into Luso's ear. "Luso are you crazy? Are you siding up with Chrom? The Ylissian prince?"

"Of course I am. He is fighting the same enemy we are."

"I will not fight by his side. There are things I cannot forget!"

"Hey Magician!" Robin said softly. "I don't know what Chrom has done to you, but put it aside until the bandits are gone. No matter what blood is between you and him, the villagers are more important right?"

Issaic stared at Robin's cloak, which was dark brown with inkstains and gaudy purple eyes all over it. Almost as if coming out of a haze, Issaic nodded his head as if he got the message Robin was sending him, grit his teeth and grumbled. "Fine. I am not fighting alongside Chrom though. I will fight for you and only you. Grimleal should support each other right? My spells are yours to command!"

"Two more members of the militia should be coming." Luso noted. "Why aren't they here yet?"

A severed head sailed through the air and landed on the ground next to the mercenary's foot. The unseeing eyes of the dead militia man stared up at the gathered.

A bandit with a thin sheen of stubble raised his axe in the air and cried out.

"Come my friends! The Shepherds have arrived to fight with us! Finish 'em off! We'll deal with the villagers later! Show your mettle, and look sharp as we are fighting Royalty! Whichever most noble of my force kills Chrom will get a double share of the loot from ransoming his royal corpse! Don't be afraid! It's four down and six to go, and these six will go down just as easily as pieces of meat on Garrick's plate! Rush them!"

Twelve bandits, excluding Garrick, entered into a triangle like formation. They started to charge straight towards the prince and his men.

Robin's eyes danced all around the area looking for some way to avoid the formation, which would swallow up any smaller force caught up in it. It was a fairly simple idea. The wings would sweep around and encircle the middle during the engagement. But because it was so simple, it was effective against small groups and just as simple to think of a countermeasure.

"Chrom, Frederick, Luso! Back up into that alleyway. Issaic slow the bandits down with wind magic!"

"You better not choke on this piece of meat Garrick!" Issaic muttered darkly. "For Grima! Wind!"

A torrent of air currents gathered around the young magician's body and blew directly towards the small formation. The force of the gale pushed them back with such force it was impossible to move for just long enough for the tiny squad to retreat.

"Robin! We are in the alley!" Luso cried out as he dashed into the corridor.

"Issaic! Come on!" Robin shouted as he ran between the buildings.

The magician nodded and followed the albino.

"Form a line! Frederick take the ones on the left side of the alley, Chrom and Luso, switch off on the right side! Issaic and I will provide ranged support!"

The bandits rushed forward with their axes right as the Shepherds entered the formation specified.

The smell of ozone and gore filled up Luso's nostrils as swords and lightning bolts flashed around him. It was ten minutes, that he didn't even notice. Ten minutes of losing himself in combat, ten minutes of ducking and sidestepping under axes, ten minutes of getting wounded to an inch of his life and being healed by the wave of a staff. It took five minutes for him to exit the trance of fighting. Luso came to realize it was over. The small alleyway was filled with blood and Chrom was standing over Garrick with a drawn sword.

Rather Chrom was cleaning his sword on Garrick's jacket. The man had long been stabbed.

Luso took a few steps forward and looked down at his hands. They were soaked in blood. The man promptly took a few steps back into the alleyway and came back out after vomiting.

"Mercenary, you, your magician companion, and Robin are requested to see Chrom immediately."

"Ungya!"

Luso whirled around and saw Frederick standing directly behind him. Luso asked queasily. "How long have you been standing there."

"For quite a while. I saw you vomit." The great knight said with a smile. "Do you have a weak stomach?"

"Somewhat." Luso groaned. "I'm going to see Chrom like you asked."

Robin, a restrained Issaic, and Luso soon stood before Chrom. "Alright, before Frederick gets back and lectures me, I have an offer to make to you three. As you saw, there are bandits roaming in across the Plegian border every day, and the people suffer. The Shepherds, the volunteer army that combats these bandits day by day is sorely undermanned. From what I saw all three of you are quite capable. Would you like to enlist?"

Luso thought for a few seconds. He had no real job he could do, after all he never really did much work before and had not much skill at anything like farming or woodworking. Secondly, he lacked money to start any business even if he had the skills. The army really was the best option.

"I'll do it." Luso said with a nod.

Issaic twitched slightly and dragged Luso to a private location next to a fountain.

"Luso! Are you mad! It's one thing to protect the innocent but to join the Ylissian army!"

"This is what I will do Issaic. This is my choice."

"You're going somewhere I can't follow. I just can't do this. Join Chrom? Never. Blood runs deep between Ylisse and Plegia. Plegians and Ylissians certainly don't match. We are like oil and vinegar."

"Nevertheless this is what I chose."

"Do what you want! See if I care!" Issaic said in anger. "I can't believe my childhood friend could change this much. I think that you are a stranger that stole Matt's skin sometimes."

Luso looked at his feet sadly. "Perhaps I am. Take this Issaic. I wish you good luck."

The mercenary handed Issaic his money pouch, and gave the magician a quick hug. "This is where we part ways. See you."

Luso turned away and followed Chrom.

* * *

**Roster**

Luso

Died-

An often exasperated traveler that was recruited into the Shepherds by Chrom. Despite his confusion at the customs and actions of his companions, he is a capable thinker, and is quite good at deciphering what to do. The most fearful of Frederick.

Born June 25

Can support-

Chrom  
Robin  
Issaic  
Luke  
Lonqu  
Libra  
Frederick  
Yenfey  
Philia  
Cherche  
Sully  
Orphea

Anna  
Noah

Sayri

+Future children.

* * *

**All units when recruited, will have a Roster, and a list of all supports possible with that unit. Just a little thing I'm going to do. You may not recognize some of the names but that's because some of them are OCs, and will appear sometime in the future.**

**If this story gets popular, maybe I should write a support thing? The sky is the limit I guess.**

**Some may wonder what happened to Matt(Luso's Host), Issaic, And the Militia men in the original timeline. **

**Matthew died of a fever, Issaic was one of the magicians in the mission Foreseer, and all the Militia men died a nasty death just like this timeline. Except for One militia man who ran away. His name was Steve and was shunned by all the villagers forever. **

**If you enjoyed the story, please Review! Anon Reviews are still up so no need to login to do so! Thank you!**


	4. Always Pack a Tent

**I do not own Fire Emblem. I do not own anything. All Hail Intelligent Systems.**

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**Speak Softly And Always Bring a Tent.**

* * *

**I've always found the rain very calming.**  
**Venus Williams**

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"Whose bright idea was it to go camping?" Luso chanted.  
"Frederick's!" Lissa cheered.  
"Who said keep on moving till nightfall so we can't find a campground that isn't covered in poison ivy?"  
"Frederick!" Chrom laughed with a wry smile.

Frederick looked at his feet and grumbled. "The things I put up with for the good of the realm... Luso gather the fire wood."

"But we don't even have a camp location yet!"  
"Carry the wood then. I expect three logs when we find a clearing." Frederick smiled sadistically.  
Luso groaned as he picked up a series of thick branches off of the ground.  
"Frederick only cheerful when he's about to bring down the axe." Chrom smirked as he grabbed a few of the sticks off of Luso's arms.  
"Or Lance." Robin noted. "But he can equip an axe if he wanted too. Speaking of weapons, Luso, is that a kill sword on your waist?"  
"Kill sword?" Luso fumbled around with the stack of wood, dropping a stick on top of Lissa's foot. The Ylissian princess pouted at Luso and swore revenge as she squeezed her foot.  
"The Killing Edge." Robin replied eloquently. "Are you even skilled enough to use it?"  
"Eh? The Katana? Why shouldn't I be? I learned martial arts-"  
"Just don't use it for a few battles." Robin muttered. "Stick to the iron sword for now."  
"Why?"  
"Just don't." Robin smirked. "Trust me. I'm the tactician."  
"I found a camping ground." Frederick said to the group.  
After Luso was flayed alive for only bringing branches, the small group had all the motivation to gather firewood. As a result, despite night falling within ten minutes, they gathered enough wood for a fire.  
Frederick quickly started the fire using flint and steel, and the group huddled around it for warmth.

"Did you notice?" Frederick broke the silence. "The bandits spoke with a Plegian accent."  
"Plegian?" Robin asked while wrapping his coat a little bit tighter.  
"Ylisse's neighbor to the west, a theocracy covered in sand, and inhabited by Grimleal."  
Robin paused and thought for a few seconds."Why would bandits come to attack Ylisse? Is there any reason?"  
"Eighteen years ago, there was a short but very ferocious war between Ylisse and Plegia that lasted for two years. Cornelius, the previous Exalt, ordered a crusade, a holy war against the Grimleal. Seven small armies rushed into Plegia, given free rein to do whatever they wished. It was horrifying because of the soldiers who fought. They could do whatever they wished, and took advantage of the lawlessness. One out of three Plegians died, most of them women and children."  
"Frederick..."  
"I was one of those soldiers, barely seventeen when I went to the front. But I was one of the few who never attacked noncombatants. I became well known because of that. That's why I still serve as a knight captain. Emmeryn dismissed anyone who was known to attack any refugee camps."  
"How did the war end?" Robin murmured while stroking the fire.  
"A decisive battle between Mustafa's, and Cornelius's armies. In that battle, Cornelius lost his life causing an uneasy peace to be created between Ylisse and Plegia."  
Issaic's words echoed in Luso's ears. "Blood runs deep between Ylisse and Plegia. We are like oil and vinegar."  
"So... If a war begins..." Luso muttered.  
"Every last Plegian will support it. I'm going to go find some food." Frederick turned and left the campsite, leaving behind an awkward silence.  
"Not every Plegian." Luso stretched and walked away from the campsite to find some water.  
When Luso returned with a water skin, he found the remaining Shepherds eating some kind of meat. Robin and Chrom were devouring it at a speed unmatched, Lissa was complaining about its smell, and Frederick was waiting in silence.  
"Meat is meat. Calm down and eat it." Chrom groaned in between bites. At this point meat juice was running down his face, slathering his jaws in the same manner blood does on sharks.  
"What kind of person eats bear? You'll mess up the Ecosystem!" Lissa complained.  
"The scary thing is." Luso muttered while dropping of three water skins, next to the fire. "That the bear has almost no meat left. You jerks really didn't save me any did you."  
Robin coughed slightly as he spat a bone into the fire. "Sorry."  
Frederick's eyes flashed as he quickly passed his share of bear over to Luso. The great knight disguised his motion with the act of picking up a water skin.  
"Yes it is most unfortunate. Thank you for the water."  
Luso leaned back against the side of a tree while looking over his(Frederick's) share. It had a few nibbles but was otherwise completely untouched.  
Luso had barely took the first bite when he recalled something about camping.  
"By the way, do we have tents?"  
Everyone in the camp simultaneously looked at Frederick.  
"Tents? Why would we need tents?"  
Lissa asked. "Well what if it rains?"  
Thunder cracked and lightning split the sky as water fell from the heavens.  
Luso covered his head with his hands. "You just had to ask."  
The torrent of water had them drenched in about ten seconds.  
Sleeping outside in the early fall, while it was raining means hypothermia is a potent threat. And desperate times called for desperate measures.

Luso spun quickly flicking water off of his armor. When it was somewhat dry, the mercenary grunted. "We are never speaking of that night ever again."  
Robin shook the water out of his coat and carefully examined the thunder tome in his pocket while shuddering in retrospect.  
"Agreed. "  
"But it was warm." Frederick commented while slipping on his armor. "And I got to be with Milord. I'll be damned before Lord Chrom was cold!"  
"I had to keep watch over Lissa." Chrom rubbed his eyes with a tired expression. "I'm wasn't going to let anyone-"  
"We understand Chrom." Luso droned slowly. "How much longer until Ylisstol?"  
"Well not much longer. Just a few more hours of walking" Frederick said with a cheerful smile.  
"By a few." Lissa stuck her tongue out. "He means seven. Gyuak! A bug!"  
As the princess retched next to a tree, Chrom sighed and strapped his sword to his waist.  
"We can stop to forage for breakfast later. Let's move."

After another forced march that took longer than an SAT. The party finally took a break. The water from the previous night's storm had gotten into their socks and shoes. Because moisture softens skin and makes it more apt to blister, everyone in the party except Chrom and Frederick had welts on their fests.  
"Alright, take a break and find some food." Frederick muttered after an hour's worth of begging.  
Chrom charged into the forest looking for meat, with Lissa rushing after him to make sure he caught something that wasn't bear.  
Frederick shadowed the two siblings, creeping after them with his lance at his side, almost heartbroken to inform the prince that if he caught meat, then they would have to stop to make a fire. The knight did not know how to tell Chrom that he would have to give up on the meat and rather go for plants like dandelions.  
Even in this world, nobody liked dandelions.  
Robin and Luso, unlike the siblings and the knight had wandered off in opposite directions without a care. The only thing they had to remember was to return to the road before the break ended.  
After only a few minutes of searching for food Robin lay down for a nap.  
Luso on the other hand knew things about the land he never studied before. He could find berries, roots, and plants that were edible, even though he had never seen any of the things in his life. Instincts warned him when he smelled a set of dark blue berries, and caused his mouth to water when he found a certain fruit in a tree.  
The boy wandered around taking fruit, and berries, sampling them as he searched around for food.  
It was all fine and dandy until the earth shook and a pillar of magma sprayed into the sky. The heat smashed into Luso's body in an evil wave, causing a torrent of cold sweat to rapidly evaporate.  
The mercenary turned and dove behind a rock formation as the lava rained down upon him.

Chrom and Lissa had been searching for traces of deer. The prince had knelt directly next to a set of fresh footprints when a rumbling sound started to echo from the hills.  
The trees started to fall, one by one as the shaking got worse and worse.  
"Lissa? Run." Chrom muttered as the earth started tearing apart piece by piece.  
Like a demon escaping the pits of Hell, a torrent of Lava cracked the soil and sprang up from the scorched earth. Long arms of magma reached out, grasping at the escaping prince, but never capable of touching him. It was not his day to die after all.  
"This place looks safe." Chrom wiped his sweat off his brow and groaned slightly.  
A summoning circle in the sky said otherwise.  
Just as he said those words, a pair of bodies fell with a large thump next to the Ylissian prince and princess.  
"What are those!" Lissa muttered.  
"I don't know. Stay back." Chrom drew his sword, the Falchion, and stared at the two silent corpses.  
"Are you sure? They seem human. Don't you think they need healing?"  
One of the creatures slowly stood up. It was human but not human. It had the same form as a human, but it's eyes glowed in the dark.  
From seeing the eyes alone Chrom knew that it was no ally.  
"Kill... Prince... Gragh." The creature groaned slowly while raising a rusty hatchet.  
"I don't think so." Chrom quickly ran forward and slashed across the monster's chest, fatally cutting the creatures heart into two pieces. "That should do." The prince muttered as he raised his sword above his head. A faint growl came from behind him. "Huh?" Chrom quickly turned around and saw the monster, still alive, was raising its axe to attack him.  
"Ngh!" The hatchet crashed down upon Chrom's sword, grinding against the Falchion's edge.  
Chrom briefly struggled against the monster's strength before deciding to kick the creature in the chest. With a loud thump, the monster fell backwards and scrambled in an attempt to get up.  
With a single strike, Chrom decapitated the creature, its glowing eyes fading to black as it slumped against the side of a tree.  
A piercing scream caused Chrom to jump. Lissa had backed up against a tree, trembling as the second monster approached her slowly.  
It raised its axe and started to swing it, with the intent to kill. Chrom shouted in desperation, chasing after the creature with sword in hand.

_No! I'm not going to make it in time! _  
"Lissa!"  
A blue blur flew through the air, landing in front of the axe man. The blur was a man, just a few inches shorter then Chrom, with dark blue hair and a mask shaped like a butterfly on his face. In his right hand was a sword, polished until it gleamed. With one smooth strike, the man knocked the axe out of the monster's hand, and stabbed the creature through the throat.  
"Quite an entrance." Chrom said with a nod. "I guess I have to thank you for saving my sister. What's your name?"  
The boy simply stared at Chrom for a few minutes. before sheathing his sword. After a few seconds he muttered. "Its Marth."  
"Well Marth, would you like to join the Shep-"  
Before Chrom could even finish his statement the enigmatic swordsman was gone. More and more of the creatures were rising up from the forest floor and lurching towards him.  
"This is just great. Where is everyone?"

* * *

Frederick was dashing through the forest on his beloved horse searching for his lord. After a calamity like this, Prince Chrom was the highest priority. Anything, and everything else be damned!  
Two of the monsters leaped out from behind trees to ambush the great knight. The risen groaned in pleasure. The fulfillment from killing was the best in the world.  
"No time for this! Milord could be injured! Dead! Had his clothing torn!" Frederick roared in frustration. "Pick a god and pray, foul beasts!"  
A pair of hooves slammed into the creature's faces, and split their skulls in two.

* * *

Robin had long since awakened from the all the shaking and the fire falling from the sky. The first night, he was kept awake by Chrom and Luso both continuously rolling-over in their sleep, the sheer cold, and the fact that they had no cover and it was raining. Now his nap was interrupted by fire from the sky.  
It is needless to say that Robin was pissed.  
"I checked the roads, and the paths already, where could they be? Searching around like this will get me nowhere."  
A dull padding sound came from the right, a sound exactly like a horse galloping. It could be Frederick, or it could be any other horseman caught up in the blast.  
"Pick a god and pray!"  
It was Frederick.  
Robin started to chase after the sound of the horse, running as fast as his legs would take him. Then he crashed directly into a lithe boy.  
"Gah!"  
"Sir Robin?"  
Robin looked down at the person he slammed into. The boy was skinny and wore a polished black mask. Robin examined his body as quickly as possible attempting to absorb every detail possible. The albino shifted his body so that it wouldn't completely cover the person he bumped into.  
"Do you know me? How did you know my name?" Robin squeezed the person's shoulders as tightly as possible.  
The boy tensed up as Robin grabbed onto him even tighter. "Who am I? You called me Sir, am I a noble of some sort? What am I!"  
With a hint of a blush the boy kicked Robin in the nuts. "Get off me!"  
As Robin rolled over on the forest floor in extreme pain, the tactician muttered to himself continuously that his quick beating heart was from pain, and not pleasure.

* * *

"Is it safe to come out?" Luso poked his head out from behind the rocks he had taken shelter during the cataclysm. "I don't think anything bad will pop out will it?"  
The boy glanced around at the burning forest until he heard a growling sound from behind him. Luso froze. It was a sound he heard just the other day. A sound he would rather not hear again for quite a while.  
It was another bear, completely enraged from the sky falling around it. It was so angered that it was going to maul anything that came near it that smelled of food. And Luso happened to fit both categories. The bear started salivating, and flexed its arms displaying several sharp teeth and claws.  
"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" The mercenary screamed as he scrambled away from the behemoth.


	5. The Archest of Archers

"Milord! Milady! Are you all right?"  
"I'm here, just don't ask me to run, it hurts to walk."  
"Augh! It's still chasing me! It is still chasing me! What did I ever do to you dumb bear?"

Chrom stared at his army for a few minutes, from Robin limping towards him, to Luso running around in circles being chased by a bear.  
After a few minutes of watching this pathetic scene, Frederick dismounted, walked over next to Luso and smiled in the manner that he introduced new recruits to Fitness hour.

The forest creature backed down, and ran the other way.

The great knight snorted in distaste and muttered "Now that's taken care of, onto business. What are we going to do about those monsters?"

"What do you guys normally do?" Luso unsheathed his sword and looked at the horde of undead.  
"Huh?"  
"Are such horrific creatures common around here?" Robin gestured towards the creatures with a wave of his hand. And a lightning bolt.

"What he said." Luso said with a nod.  
"They are not from Ylisse. Stick with me and we can deal with them!"  
Robin licked his lips and muttered. " Luso, stick with Frederick. Lissa stay two paces behind either one. Chrom stay behind me, and provide support to both Frederick and Luso. Stand your ground!"

The creatures charged towards them, their feet thundering as they approached closer and closer.

"Most inelegant, completely unlike myself."  
There was a whiz, not unlike a fly or a mosquito. The zombie closest to the group fell to the ground, an arrow piercing through its skull. As the monster turned into dust, a cobalt haired man approached Robin.  
"It is I! The archest of archers. A fair maiden bade me to fight alongside you."  
The "archest of archers" raised his arm, and gave an elaborate bow.  
"Fair maiden? Are you spewing that crap again? Do you want me to kick you in the gut again?"  
A knight-that wasn't Frederick- rode out from behind a series of trees and smacked the archer with the shaft of his spear. The man sprawled on the ground and winced in pain as he was whacked three times with the spear handle before the horseman relented.  
"That's a bit brutal, isn't it Sir Knight?" Luso said awkwardly. "Is the fair lady your wife? Sister? Cousin?"  
The shaft of the spear slammed into Luso's face knocking the poor man over and causing him to tumble into a small pile of bushes.  
"The fair lady in question is me. The name's Sully, it will be best not to forget it." The cavalier said while removing her helmet. Underneath the red mask was a girl with hair the color of fire. And a temperament to match.  
"Point noted. Ugh, every time I do something here, I get hurt." Luso muttered angrily.  
"Will you three cool it and get ready to fight the monsters!" Robin pointed towards an approaching zombie.  
The smell of ozone filled the air, as another bolt of lightning flew through the air.  
This time, the zombie was just out of Robin's range. The lightning bolt instead smashed into a tree causing it to shatter and catch on fire.  
The burning tree drifted back and forth in the wind before snapping in two and slamming down on an old stone house. The dilapidated building's roof cracked and part of the wall fell down, three homeless men and a monk fled from the structure stopping only when they saw the zombies and then running away twice as fast as before while shrieking in horror.  
The tactician rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I can see abandoned forts. No doubt we will have a tactical advantage from staying in them."  
Frederick looked at Robin in a disapproving manner. The atmosphere was thick enough to cut with a knife.  
"But there are too many of them near those forts, let's wait to reap the benefits." Robin said hastily.  
The wave of monsters started to claw their way towards the now seven man party, with the intent of devouring and tearing them apart.  
The shepherd's didn't give them that chance.  
Virion, the archer from before, truly was the archest of archers. The man fired arrow after arrow into the slowly approaching beasts. One or two of them dropped from accurate shots to the temple, others were wounded in the arms or legs.  
Despite the archer's best efforts, the creatures were coming closer and closer, shrugging off arrows as if they didn't even hurt. "I am an archer, I excel at fighting from afar. If you could keep danger one step away that would be exemplary." Virion shouted as one of the monster swiped at him with an axe. The bowman rolled away from the creature and raised another arrow, piercing it in the eye. The risen roared in anger. staggering towards the intrepid archer.  
"Luso! Go support Virion! The rest of you, form a wall with Chrom and Frederick as the wings and Sully as the middle! We need to just last one round before we can wipe them out in one quick strike!" Robin turned around and fired off another bolt of lightning obliterating a straggling zombie that had almost gotten close to the fort.  
The archer rushed forward and slid behind Luso just as the risen was within striking distance. "You are much safer with me!" Virion said reassuringly as he patted the mercenary on the shoulder.  
"Perhaps." Luso muttered. This was the worst. It still didn't seem real. He was a raw, inexperienced soldier fighting a horde of possibly flesh eating zombies. If he didn't know better than he was in some strange videogame. Why the hell did he think that joining the army was a good idea again?  
A sword and an axe clashed as Luso desperately blocked the zombie's weapon. Since when did zombies have the ability to use weapons to begin with? Didn't they always use claws, or their teeth?  
Huh? Gigantic foot? The Pain!  
The risen had kicked him, kicked him in the face! The creature slashed at Luso while he was staggering off balance, a strike which the mercenary barely absorbed with his shield-and even then, the blade still left a somewhat deep cut in his arm. Hissing in a sadistic pleasure, the creature raised its axe to finish him off.  
"Must I do everything?" Virion groaned as he kicked Luso aside. Luso tumbled backwards, but it was enough for him to avoid being hit by the axe.  
"No!" Luso slashed upwards slicing into the risen's flesh and bone. The creature collapsed and faded into dust. It smelled like a rotten piece of roast pork, a smell which seemed oddly familiar to this body at least.

There was no time to think. The second creature was already upon him, this time a sword wielder, wearing armor nearly identical too his. Luso knew two rules of fighting another swordsman. First, there is not much of a safe range to strike another swordsman while wielding a sword yourself, so strike quickly and either rush past them or back off. A long series of strikes and parries may look cool, but generally should be avoided.  
The second rule? Stabs are almost always lethal. Take a slash if it is the only way to grant victory, avoid stabs at all costs.  
Luso and the risen circled around each other, one sizing the other up, the other patiently waiting for his opponent to strike. The human attacked first. But it wasn't Luso. An arrow flew into the Risen's eye, knocking its head backwards, and breaking its focus.  
The Risen's head went next.

"Ugh." The mercenary groaned as the monster faded to dust. "How many left."  
"Only one left, the others seem to be far superior at combat then you." Virion drew an arrow and nocked it onto his bow.  
Luso sighed. "That's to be expected. I can only get better from here though. Where is the last one?"  
"Look out! It's coming for you!" Robin panicked. "Hide in the fort don't come out until my mark!"  
It was scary how much he trusted Robin, even though Luso knew him for just one day, because the very first thing Luso did was dive into the rubble of the destroyed house.  
Virion leaped in right after him, fleeing in sheer terror.  
The last zombie was a behemoth, a colossal giant of eight feet. Thick muscles and tight skin wrapped around the creature's entire frame, marred only in a scorch mark from Robin's magical prowess.  
In its hands was a giant axe of rusted iron, its edge chipped and scarred. If he was hit by that, he would die. No questions asked.

The creature slowly but surely entered the structure, the shattered stone building, breaking apart slightly as the risen broke the walls in a fit of rage. Its glowing red eyes pierced through the shadows, seeking out the two of them, the weakest of the flock, its prey. Luso shivered as its eyes glazed over his hiding spot, the broken remains of a table. Virion, trembling in fright gestured towards a break in the wall. If they ran now, they might have a chance to escape.  
The idea was tempting, even more so as the risen came closer and closer. It was barely three feet away, close enough that Luso could smell whatever compounds made up the zombie's skin. He could hear his heartbeat, and it was fast.  
Virion started to move towards the exit when Luso grabbed the archer's sleeve.  
"Not yet." Luso mouthed. His mind screamed for him to run. Why he was stopping someone else was beyond him. The Risen turned its head and stared straight at his hiding spot.  
Screw it.  
Run.

"MARK!"  
The two men charged straight out, Virion scrambled out first, and Luso soon after. As soon as they had exited the "fort" Luso heard two cracks, as a pair of trees slammed down onto the remains of the building, shattering the remains of the house, and burying the creature under a pile of wood and stone.  
Frederick stood next to one stump an axe lying by his side.  
Robin stood next to the other with his thunder tome in hand.  
"Great plan. But how did you know that monster would go after me?" Luso asked while Lissa healed his wounds.  
"You were the most inexperienced and already wounded. If everyone else was in top conditions after the use of vulneraries and Lissa's staff, then I was almost certain that it would hunt you first."  
"But why not Lissa or Virion? They would die just as easily as I would. How did you know it wouldn't just change targets?" Luso rubbed his arms, shivering from his near-death experience.  
"Lissa was too far away, it couldn't have gotten to her even if wanted too." The tactician stretched his legs in preparation for marching.  
"And Virion?"  
"He was using you as a shield."

* * *

**Short Chapter I know. But it didn't flow right with the next chapter so I will break my 2500 word minimum just this once. **

**Anyways, I don't own anything so I hope no one sues me.**


	6. The Danger of Crowds

**Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.**

**Friedrich Nietzsche**

* * *

After an hour of frantic rushing towards the capital, the journey involving several curse words, three uses of Lissa's staff and a rope, the group haggardly made its way to Ylisstol.  
"Thank god, it's finally over. Never again." Luso groaned as he fell on his face.  
Robin nodded in affirmation. He was barely able to stand, and only managed to do so because of Chrom supporting him. "I never thought... It was possible to be run over by a horse three times in an hour..."

Lissa hopped off of the cavalier's horse and said, "I thought it was fun! I didn't have to walk at all!"  
Frederick nodded in affirmation and said dreamily. "And Milord rode with me the entire time."  
Virion groaned "Can someone please untie me?"  
Sully walked over and undid the ropes that tied him to the horse. "Hey Ruffles, next time if you don't want to be dragged all the way to the destination, don't try to flirt with someone on the road and slow us down"  
"My dear lady." The archer said with a slight smile. "I was merely-"  
"Cut the crap Ruffles, or Frederick will do it again."  
Virion's mouth shut faster than a child at a dentist.  
"Damn right! If you try-"  
"So this is Ylisstol! The capital!" Robin said abruptly, cutting Sully off before the lady said another string of curses.  
Chrom nodded and said, "Thank Gods, the quake was limited to the forest. All of our suspicions were for naught."  
"The monsters we saw don't seem to here either. Milord. We must report the incident to the Exalt."  
"Sister will be shocked. I am not looking forward to telling her monsters are in the realm." Chrom frowned and crossed his arms.  
Robin noted, "Wait, Chrom. If your sister is the Exalt then..."  
Frederick smiled in a ghastly way. Well, it wasn't exactly ghastly, it actually looked fairly normal. It was only strange because it was Frederick. "He is the prince of the realm, and Lissa is the princess."  
Luso groaned as he stood up. "So we've been traveling with royalty the entire time?"  
"Milord!" Robin cried out. "I apologize for my dreadful manners!"  
"Please Robin, I dislike those fancy titles. Just Chrom." The prince pulled a dark brown cloak over his head and pushed open the gates. "Lets just go inside."

"The Exalt has come to see us! The Exalt has come to see us!"  
"I think we came at a bad time." Luso muttered. "I can't see a thing through this crowd." It was a huge gathering with thousands of villagers and city dwellers hustled about a single person and her guards.  
"I can't see anything either. Bend over Luso."  
"Huh? Alright but why-"  
Robin leaped onto Luso's back giving him a vantage point. "Hey! I can see the Exalt!"  
"Hey!" The mercenary whirled around as fast as he could in an attempt to throw Robin off. The tactician flew through the air and slammed headfirst into a random villager.  
"What in the name of Grima's smallclothes was that for?!"  
"Luso, Robin, back up and wait until she goes into the palace." Chrom said with a sigh.  
"But then we can't see the Exalt!" Luso whined. "This might be my only chance to see an actual queen in person!"  
"If you feel so strongly about it we can visit the palace. Just back up!" Chrom said with a hiss. "I don't want to be noticed by your antics!"  
"I do not think that we should trust them to that extent milord." Frederick grumbled. "Perhaps we could give a description inste-"  
"Stop it Frederick!" Chrom shouted while waving his arm around. The dark brown traveling cloak he wore fell off shoulders. "I'm sick and tired of-"  
The villagers started to murmur amongst themselves, as they watched the prince.

"Isn't that prince Chrom?"

"He commands the Shepherds, is handsome, and is of Royal blood! Isn't he dreamy?"

"I can't forget how he fought off those bandits that were attacking out village. That swordsmanship! That skill!"

"Marry me Chrom!"

The villagers slowly started to encircle the Ylissian prince and the small group that traveled with him.  
"Um..." Luso said softly. "Run?"  
"To the palace!"  
They took off, fear of the crowd bringing forth new strength in their limbs, dust clouds were the only evidence that they were even there.  
Did that stop the villagers? The fact their idol ran for his life? Hell no! They started to chase after the fleeing prince with outstretched arms.  
"Robin! Luso! This is all your FAAAUUULLLT!" Prince Chrom shouted as he dodged the ensnaring grasps of an amorous village girl.  
"How is this our fault! You were the one who took of your own god damn cloak! Jesus Christ!" Luso shrieked back, while dodging the tackle of a village man. "Why are they going for me too! Take Chrom, not me!"  
"If we manage to take one of you! Chrom will stay behind!" The villager responded.  
"Also, mysteriously, everyone in the Shepherds is sexy." One of the more perverted villagers remarked. "If we can't get the main course, why not the side?"  
"I think I see the princess!"  
Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.  
"Go around that building! The crowd is gathering to ambush us at those alleyways!" Robin quickly ordered while dodging a yellow haired maiden.

"Help me!" Virion shouted in vain as a group of villagers grasped him and sucked him into the crowd. The archest of archers stoically said just before succumbing to the crowd, "I cannot allow the final curtain to fall...and inflict such grief- Wait! Where are you going?"  
Ignoring him completely, Luso and the rest of the shepherds continued to run to the palace, Luso turned around for just one second. "Goodbye Virion. We hardly knew ye"  
The remaining shepherds turned a corner and saw a massive wave of villagers coming from the left and right, crashing down upon them.  
"Chit!" Sully and Luso shouted simultaneously, as the entire group dived into another set of allies.  
They ran past seven or eight houses until they almost reached the palace gates. They were so close but yet so far away. The villagers had already reformed and were closing in at a rate faster than any man could run.  
"It's time to minimize losses. They are primarily for Chrom, Lissa, and... Sully?" Robin looked uneasily at a crowd of enamored villagers staring at the cavalier.  
"They are worse than a horde of belibers." Luso said whimsically. "Both after girls who resemble boys."  
Whack! "OW!"  
"I heard that.I don't know what a belieber is, but I know an insult when I hear one." Sully tightened her grip on her lance.  
"Chrom." Robin said quietly. "Go with Frederick and ride through the crowd. Lissa ride with Sully and go alongside him."  
"No. Absolutely not." Chrom gripped Robin's shoulder tightly. "I'm not leaving you behind like this. "  
"Chrom, it's the only way." Robin said passively. "Send for help when you get in the passage."  
"But Robin..."  
"Go. I'm sorry to have failed you." The tactician smiled and accepted his fate.  
"Come on! You make it sound like we are all going to die." Luso sighed. "They are just villagers how bad could it be?"  
Virion came running towards them, his clothing rumpled and covered in the grime of a thousand hands.  
"Most noble gentlemen! Fair lady! I come with a warning! They have horses now! You must escape now! Run!"  
The horde of villagers swallowed up the nobleman, their feet covering up the sound of the screams.  
"Chrom! No more hesitating! Go now! Luso and I will be fine!"  
"I'm going to be fine?" Luso screamed as he saw the horde closing in.  
"Hell no!" Sully shouted as she grabbed Lissa and started riding towards the final stretch.  
"Hey Luso." Robin smiled grimly. "Remember how you asked how bad could it be?"  
"Uh... Yes?" Luso squeaked as the human wave crashed towards the two of them. He could swear he could hear someone say, "fresh meat."

"So how about you go first?" Robin shoved Luso head first, with the hope to sate the crowd. "If by one sacrifice we can guarantee the survival of the rest, we should do it"  
"Son of a-"  
Luso clawed his hands through the crowd and grabbed the corner of Robin's cloak. Thank god that thing was long!  
"If that's how it works, I'm taking you with me!"

The tactician let out a scream when he was dragged into the crowd with him.  
The mass of human hands were grasping at him, applying pressure to almost every part of his body. The huge tumbling mass of flesh were feeling his chest, back, head.  
It was hard to breathe, and the little air he could inhale smelled of sweat.  
The zombies he had fought, they were twisted, muscled warped in every way and flesh putrid, and he would trade fighting them then this. Luso screamed in agony, frustration, and claustrophobia. A prayer to god that he wasn't sure would be answered.

But it was.

All of a sudden, the pressure was gone and the suffocating crowd vanished with the blink of an eye, the people vanishing like ants below him. Luso looked up and saw the white feathers of a Pegasus drifting around him. A blonde lady with crimson eyes was holding him by his collar by one hand and the reins of the horse in another.

"I am Philia. Newly installed knight captain of the Pegasus knights. You are Robin correct? Chrom bade me to fetch you."  
"No, I'm Luso." Luso said as calmly as a man drifting a hundred feet in the air by his collar could- which frankly wasn't that calm.  
The Pegasus knight looked at the Mercenary for a few seconds, let go of Luso's then entered a steep dive towards the crowd.  
Luso could see the ground hurtling towards him, the villagers already parting the impact zone. The mercenary decided the best decision at this point was to scream as a blur of white spun in a figure eight before flying beneath him.

"Eyaaaaaaa! Oomph!"

Luso promptly landed on the back of Philia's Pegasus.  
"Chrom mentioned you too. He told me to pick you up if I had enough time. Hold on tight, it's going to be a little fast."  
"If you had time? What am I? Milk at the grocery!"  
"No." Philia said as she gripped tighter onto the Pegasus's back."Milk spoils quickly so it needs to be procured just before the meal, I would say potatoes, those last for a while in the pantry."  
"My worth is less then milk?"  
"Less than the potatoes actually until you prove yourself." Philia smirked sarcastically. "Hang on."  
"I deserve at least onion status! Do you hear me! I demand onion status!"  
Luso scanned the places to grab. The only thing there was to grab was the Pegasus's back, and... Philia. He could wrap his arms around her waist for the most security, but that was a bad idea, the shoulders would be creepy, and definitely not the head or neck.  
"What exactly am I supposed to grab?"  
The Pegasus suddenly accelerated, at such a speed Luso nearly flew off. After a shrill scream Luso found his arms around Philia's waist.  
"You grab there." The knight said nonchalantly. "Do you see Robin?"  
"He's that dark brown blob in that corner over there." Luso said still hugging Philia's waist for dear life.  
"I need you to do something for me. When I fly over to Robin, grab onto him."  
"Huh?"

Philia flew up to an even higher altitude, the steady wing beats making the ride feel like the rollercoaster from Hell. The ride could flip, turn, and accelerate at any time, and worst of all, there was no bars securing him in place.  
"Please keep all hands, limbs, and loose items within the vehicle at all times." Luso said in a daze. Philia entered into a steep dive. "Put all bags in a designated area and please enjoy the ride."  
The Pegasus had swooped and Luso was holding onto Robin's leg with both hands, leaning over the Pegasus. Philia's tight grasp on his collar secured Luso in place, ensuring he didn't fall off as he supported Robin's weight.  
"Mission success?" Robin's coat flapped in the wind as he flew upside down through the city streets.  
"Perhaps." Philia noted as the Pegasus grunted from the exertion of carrying three people.  
"I... Can't... Breathe." Luso groaned. "Being...choked...by a girl to death. Not what I expected."  
Philia's glare was terrifying but she eventually let go of his collar and grabbed his belt instead.  
The three of them flew just a little further before the knight decided to land if it could even be called that. The landing was more like a crash then a landing. The Pegasus snorted as it got up from the crumpled heap that was Luso, Robin and Philia.  
"From now on, there will be a two person limit per Pegasus, and it will be enforced." Philia muttered under her breath.  
"I agree." Luso said as he tried to drag his way out of the pile. "Both of you, please get off. I think you warped my spine."  
"Sorry." Robin winced. "I wanted to land on something softer then the stone paths."  
"Aim for the trees then." Luso muttered.  
"The gardener would kill you. Frederick takes care of the pruning." Philia noted. "Lets go inside."

The three walked through the palace until they came across a small velvet door.  
Philia's back straightened, her face froze into a stern look, and she slowly started to open the door.  
Still impatient, Luso stepped forward and opened the door for her when he heard Chrom say.  
" Safe as they can be, Emm. But we still need to watch the borders. The brigands crossed over from Plegia."  
Philia eyes widened and she promptly burst into the room, causing one of the double doors to become unhinged. Luso spun twice and landed on the floor, face first just before he was trampled. "My apologies, the Pegasus knights should have-"  
"Your place was beside the Exalt, it is not a problem. This duty is for the Shepherds. We can handle the bandits. Speaking of the Shepherds it seems you brought Luso here."  
"Sir!" Philia straightened out and stood tall in acknowledgement.  
Chrom smiled and gripped his shoulder. "Although I would prefer if you got off him."  
"How much abuse can I take in one day?" The mercenary groaned.  
Philia took exactly two steps to the right and walked off the prone man. After she did so, Luso slowly rose to his feet. After that particular ordeal, Luso decided to loop his arm around Robin and use him as a support. The tactician thought against it, still peeved at the earlier incident and pushed him onto the floor.  
Chrom shook his head at the two men, and covered his face with his hand.  
Luso had never been so humiliated before in his life, in front of a queen no less.  
"These two jokers are Luso and Robin. They are the newest recruits to the Shepherds. They helped us fight against the bandits in Southtown."  
Lady Emmeryn reached out a gentle hand and helped Luso back on his feet. Her slight smile made Luso instantly less angry at Robin. To say this woman was charismatic was an understatement, Emmeryn was an angel. It was almost enough for Luso to forget Philia was staring at him the entire time with an expression of horror.  
"It seems that Ylisse owes both of you a debt of gratitude."  
"Milady Emmeryn-" Frederick said. "It is my opinion that we should not trust them utterly. They could be-" The knight turned to face Robin, "Plegian spies-" then turned to face Luso "Brigands themselves."  
"Yet Chrom trusted them enough to be brought into the palace." Emmeryn said, while patting Luso's head.  
"Yes but-"  
"If my brother trusts them, so will I. But thank you for your wariness, everyone needs a person to be on constant alert."  
"Milady." Robin, Luso, and Frederick said simultaneously. Emmeryn only smiled at their response.  
"Chrom, Frederick, we need to discuss the new threat you mentioned. For the new recruits, maybe Philia could show them around the city?"  
"Yes Milady. If you order it." The knight said stiffly.  
Luso's eyes flicked over to Philia. The Pegasus knight stared back at him blankly. What kind of gene combinations did it make to get someone with red eyes? Well Chrom did have blue hair, but still... And Robin had white hair and grey eyes. Were the frequency of those traits common here? Why did everyone look so strange?  
Were those traits heritable? If Philia had kids, would they have red eyes also?  
The mercenary slapped himself to stop daydreaming.  
"Or Emm, I could show them where they will stay in the future! The barracks of the Shepherds!" Lissa said while hopping up and down.  
"Err, I think I will go with Phi-" then the mercenary stopped midsentence. It seemed almost criminal to reject the bubbly princess. "Fine, let's go to the barracks. Are you coming Robin?"  
"Obviously." The tactician said. "I can't help but feel we forgot something important though."

* * *

"Why isn't anyone helping me! Augh! Please unhand me!"  
Virion struggled against the horde of villagers. "Fair Lady? Chrom! Robin? Luso? Somebody!"

* * *

"If it was important, I'm sure we would remember." Lissa said cheerfully.

"I suppose." Robin shrugged.

* * *

**Disclaimers. I don't own anything, nor do I make any profit. I hope you enjoyed the story so far. Luso gets hurt a lot doesn't he? His pain hasn't even begun. HA. **


	7. The Shepherds

"This is the barracks! Your new home!" Lissa said with flowery cheer. "I'll go find everyone to introduce you!"

Luso and Robin looked at the wooden table in the center of the room and dropped everything on top of it. That included themselves, as they slumped down on top of the table and blankly stared at the wall paper.

"So Luso, what do you think the shepherds are like?"

The mercenary sighed and rubbed his back. It still hurt like Hell.

"Everyone is probably like Frederick and Sully. Focused, strong, disciplined, and seriou-"

"Hey! I heard that we got new students! Old-Teach is in the class! Who's up for a private session!" A hardy, yellow haired warrior bellowed as he strode into the room. The brawny man raised an iron axe in the air and swung it three times- smashing a vase- in a demonstration. "Come on! It's Vaike time!"

A lady with far too much make up rushed in brandishing an umbrella. "How uncouth! If you serve under the prince of all Ylisse, you must be less loud and impertinent!"

A green haired man drowsily wandered out of the kitchen. He said with a smile, "I learned that I can eat while sleeping! Success!"

A lady with red hair was speaking to a young boy down the hall. "I believe that if we utilize a lever and a heavy counter weight to launch you into the air while you wore a device utilized to increase air resistance? We could collect information about how much further you go with it attached! We could make a breakthrough in aerodynamics! It would be a fine datum for my analysis Ricken. In my Opinion you should do it."

The boy only retorted smarmily. "I don't think so Miriel. That's just a roundabout way of saying you'll fling me at Southtown using Ylisse's trebuchets with a kite taped on my back. I'm not doing it."

"If you agree to this Ricken, I will give you a concoction that will aid in your physical development. I am aware of the fact that you are apprehensive about the fact you are vertically challenged. The potion will aid you in your growth." Miriel said in an utter monotone. "This is an ultimatum. I believe the term is 'Take it or leave it.' Correct?"

Ricken's eyes twitched at the prospect. "Fine! I'll do it!"

The young mage stormed off while the elder magician left the barracks to go to the market in order to obtain a beaker of fresh milk.

While Luso and Robin looked at each other in bewilderment, the door right behind them opened suddenly. Lissa burst into the room dragging a grey haired knight. The lady immediately tripped causing her lance to fly through the air, impaling wall directly next to Luso's head. She blushed in embarrassment and shook her head tearfully. "I'm sorry! Ugh, I always screw up."

"I take that all back Robin." The mercenary said while trembling in fear. "I take it all back."

"Take what back Luso?" Lissa chirped. "Anyways, it looks like almost everyone is here. We can start, and Miriel can introduce herself later. The weather is nice today, why don't we go outside?"

The princess bounced away, skipping down the hallway.

Luso sighed and covered his face with his hands. "Let's just get this over with."

* * *

"Here comes the Vaike!"

"Argh!"

Luso ran away from the warrior as he chased the mercenary around with his axe. This was so damn unfair.

"Get away from me!" The boy shouted as he waved his wooden sword. It flew forward and smashed into Vaike's arm. The sound it made, a dull thud, indicated that it was a direct hit. Unfortunately the strike had no effect on "teach" as he brought his iron axe back to smash him to pieces.

Luso slid his left foot back to exit Vaike's range and thanked his lucky stars that he had hit the fighter with the tip of the sword, especially because the axe nicked the edge of his armor and tore off a metal plate. Any closer and that would have hit him, Luso through with a shiver. Why did Robin think that a fight was the best way to introduce him to the damn shepherds? And if he was doing so, why did the other guy not have to use a wooden weapon either?

"Axe!" Robin shouted, drawing his attention back to the fight.

Luso's mind reeled with pain as the iron axe smashed into his left arm. The boy collapsed on the ground, thrown a good threw feet from the impact alone.

"Maribelle!" The tactician said while scribbling into a notebook. "Go heal Luso. I need this to see how well you can use that stave."

The noble turned up her nose, and bit her lip. "Hmph!" She walked over to Luso daintily and slowly raised her staff. His wounds rapidly knit together and scar tissue enveloped and surrounded the injury. It itched like crazy, and felt weird, yet it was no longer bleeding. Hurray! Then a horrible thought came to the mercenary's mind.

"Robin..." The boy said menacingly.

"What is it Luso?" The tactician said while jotting notes down on a piece of paper.

"Was the reason why you had Vaike not use a training weapon, because you wanted to test Maribelle's healing abilities?"

"..."

Son of a bitch.

Luso grabbed a wooden sword off the training area rack. "Hey Robin! Now that the group saw what I can do with a sword, why not show them what you can do?"

The tactician took a few steps back, and said nervously. "I'm not sure about this. I am much better with a tome them with a sword."

The mercenary hurled the second wooden sword at the tactician smacking him square in the forehead. While the tactician was rubbing his head, Luso started to charge directly at Robin, sword in hand.

"Here I come!"

**-two hours later-**

The shepherds staggered back into the barracks, almost everyone of them tired and sweaty. The first few sparring matches pumped the rest of the group up, causing them to start an outbreak of one on one battles. Even Lissa did some strength training. The only person who had no bruises at the end of the day was Maribelle, who simply drank tea for the entire time.

Luso and Robin slumped down in a pair of particularly plush chairs in the kitchen, both of them wincing from various bruises that were too minor to request a heal for.

"We are going to die tomorrow, muscle burn and bruises hurt you the most the next day. When do you think we're going to have dinner?"

"I don't know. On the subject through, I heard that we rotate shifts on chores like cooking."

Luso groaned and leaned back into the small couch. "Ugh, who's cooking today?" Robin closed his eyes and thought for a few seconds. "I think it's Sully. She'll start when she gets back I suppose."

Suddenly Vaike, Stahl, and a very battered looking Ricken burst into the room. They swarmed the pantry, snatching away the remaining loafs of bread and the last hard pieces of cured meat. Ricken was fast, snatching away a piece of bread and dashing off, leaving Stahl and Vaike to fight over the remains. Vaike pushed Stahl against the wall, knocking the poor man out before escaping with his prize.

Maribelle rushed into the room grimly said. "For shame. They can't plan ahead and have to get hurt. Lissa and I are having tea and snacks. Hmph! You should be honored that I bother Stahl."

The lady raised a heal staff, and the viridian knight slowly roused from his sleep. Maribelle turned stiffly and left the room to practise the violin.

Stahl groaned as he saw there was no edible food left in the pantry. He grabbed a bag of flour and left chewing the fine white powder.

The door the kitchen burst open, and Sully stormed into the room with a wry smile.

"Alright, everyone out of the kitchen. It's time to cook. I'll get it right."

"We'll be glad to eat it." Luso smiled. How bad could it be?

Evidently the answer to that question was pretty bad. Really, Really bad. **  
**

There is a rule of thumb about food and digestion. Any time your feces is roughly the consistency of a smoothie, there is a problem with the food. If it's as hard as a rock, it's your digestion as well as a possible lack of fiber. If it switches between the two four times in under fifteen seconds, then it's anything goes.

In the case of which the food comes out the other end, in the same condition as it was when it entered because the body refuses to commit suicide through a silly thing like digestion, that's when you know it was Sully's cooking.

"Sweet shuffle boarding Christ on a Unicycle!" Luso swore. "What kind of stew was that?"

Robin grunted in the next bathroom stall. "If I knew it would be like this, I would have eaten the flour like Stahl."

"Move! Move!" A refined voice cried out. The door to the toilet slammed open, and the archest of archers joined the tactician and mercenary.

Robin muttered sympathetically. "So Virion, you too huh?"

"By Naga! I never expected that stew to be... Like that. My most noble tongue has never been defiled in such a way."

Luso groaned as his stomach cramped. The excruciating pain made him realize what a girl must feel like on her time of month. In actuality it was not on the same level as a period.

It was four times worse.

In between cramps and screams, Luso managed to retort grimly.

"Your most noble arse is going to be treated the same- OH GOD IN HEAVEN!"

After forty minutes of evacuating their bowels, eventually the three newcomer's stomachs stopped cramping like they were giving birth. It would have been far easier if Sully chopped the vegetables more than twice before throwing them in the pot.

Fucking Carrots.

That's when they came upon an even more distressing situation.

"Does either one of you have moss, paper, or something to wipe with?"

"..."

"..."

"I'll take that as a no." Robin said softly. "Then we have to wait until someone comes and gets us. If someone passes by we can shout for them to bring us something. All we have to be is patient."

The bathroom was completely silent, as the three men waited for ten minutes. Luso attempted to stay calm by whistling a merry tune. About five minutes after he started, the song shifted to Beethoven's fifth.

"I can't take this! Someone has to go and search for something!" Luso shouted angrily.

"Even if you clenched tighter then a wyvern grips its prey, because of Sully's stew, it will still soil your robes. Just be patient."

"How vulgar! Please, let us not speak if we do not have a solution."

Robin paused to think, then asked. "Virion, don't you wear a bib?"

"It is a cravat, the peak of noble clothing. Wait- you can't be serious."

"It's a piece of cloth Virion, you can use it in that manner perfectly well."

The archer recoiled in horror, and clenched his fist. He shot back, "What about you Robin? Don't you have a spell tome?"

"It serves a purpose in battle! I need it to kill things! Your croissant or whatever it is a fashion statement that can be grabbed in battle! Not to mention if looks completely silly!"

"My Cravat, is made of the finest silks and is worth more than three of your spell tomes."

Sick and tired of all the arguing Luso looked down at his hands for a few seconds.

"Hey Robin, Virion, you know why god made humans with two hands right?"

"Wait Luso, what are you suggesting?"

"Here goes nothing!"

The tactician and the archer paled when they heard footsteps leaving the bathroom.

Unfortunately for the Mercenary, on his way to the river to wash off the filth, he chanced a meeting with Maribelle.

Hilarity ensued, mixed with a hint of umbrella-fu, a three inch long mouse(tale not included), a stick of rancid butter, and a spork.

Unfortunately for Robin and Virion, Luso was not able to come back with toilet paper/moss as he was lying face down in a nearby stream, emotionally broken in a manner which could be described both as disturbing and hilarious.

The emotional state of the mouse was completely terrified.

All that really meant was that Robin and Virion still didn't have anything to use.

Luckily the obscene amount of violence caused a few shepherds to rush past to see the commotion.

One of them, Lissa, dropped a pile of leaves just out of the bathroom doors as she left to get her heal staff.

It was an opportunity far too good to let go.

Robin whipped out his bronze sword and slapped the leaves into the stall.

Unfortunately for both him and Virion, Lissa planned to use those leaves for pranking. In other wards they wiped their asses with poison sumac.

* * *

"This can't be real." Luso muttered softly.

He was cornered, his left arm more shattered bone and strings of flesh. His iron sword lat chipped and broken. It would not block another strike.

A devilish screech tore through his ears as his adversary raised a knife to strike, it's silver blade polished till it gleamed under the light of even a crescent moon.

Luso flailed desperately at his attacker with his scratched and rusted shield, each hit driving it back a few feet. But the end was inevitable.

The mercenary screamed as his life blood poured out of his body.

Although the boy had several nightmares before, this was the first time he had dreamed of giant carrots with weapons.

The coldness of death settled in Luso as he saw the monstrous carrot wrap around his body with roots and slowly dismember his body.

When it surrounded his body, the carrot shifted forms turning into a monstrosity of flesh and bone.

His corpse started to glow a dark blue, as the roots wrapped around his neck, and thighs.

As his body was shattered and broken, he saw the faces of the bandits he killed. Every time a bone that snapped, every time his body was penetrated he saw a face.

The Aum crystal in the mercenary's body started to glow. The crystal burst, reforming the man's body with a haze of dark blue light.

* * *

"I never-ever eating Sully's cooking ever again."

Luso said as he stumbled out of bed. This was the first time food caused a hallucination and a nightmare not directly after being consumed.

If it wasn't the food, then his subconscious was screwed up. What horrors lurked in Matthew's mind if it made him dream of murderous carrots?

Luckily, other than the stomach problems and the nightmare, his body had no other adverse reactions.

"His body"

Luso chuckled, it had only been two days and he already thought of it as his own.

The boy turned around and started to stumble around looking for the door.

Then he walked straight into a wall. More specifically a wall with curtains. Or rather not a wall at all but a window.

Chrom would later see in hindsight that building the infirmary on the second story was not a smart idea.

"GYAAAHHHH!"

* * *

_**The next day.**_

* * *

Maribelle had a fit over those rose bushes.

Luso personally had no clue why.

She didn't even notice the boy was there until Chrom and Frederick came back and found him lying buried head first into one with a very bruised ego.

Needless to say, the battle between the great knight and the thorns would be one which would be recorded into the annals of history.

After Luso was thrown into the meeting room and Frederick announced that all the Shepherds were present, Chrom started to talk about a new mission to a place called Ferox.

Robin had questioned about the mysterious nation and was told by Sumia that it was a " A unified kingdom to Ylisse's north. Inhabited by barbarians, or so it's said."

Personally, Luso was more occupied with wiping the blood off his arms. He would need to find out what kind of fertilizer was used on those roses.

With those kinds of thorns it probably was the blood and tears of virgins.

The journey north would start at dawn, and they would trek a path commonly called the north road. Although it was a simple diplomatic mission, they were to bring full arms and armor. Who knew when bandits would appear? Frederick had argued, we must be always prepared.

So the rest of the day was spent moping around and packing.

For Luso, that meant trying to figure out how to get away with the least amount of items in his pack without Frederick giving him the evil eye.

It also meant searching for things to do. As this era sadly did not have the internet, he had a lot more free time. He had heard a violin somewhere, so maybe that was a place to start. Some good old fashioned fiddling would get his spirits up.

Hey, at least he knew how to do something!

Unfortunately the moment he left his room to find the musical instrument he was swept into a monstrosity.

Luso fell into a cunning trap. A promise, that turned out to be something that would cause even the bravest of men to flee in terror.

The young mercenary looked into the eyes of death himself(again!) and saw the true face of horror.

The face was smooth youthful, and topped with a set of curly brown hair.

The death of the body had the face of a businessman. The face of death of the heart and soul was Frederick.

And the scythe of that reaper was called Frederick's fanatic fitness hour.

The horror. The horror.

* * *

"Wake up. Luso, Wake up! It is almost time for marching." Chrom said with a frown.

The mercenary was in his bunk, asleep with his eyes curiously still open. The unfocused irises gazed continuously at the ceiling, frozen from mental scarring.

The prince reached out and touched the mercenary's shoulder and shook him gently. The boy still didn't respond and instead started to twitch in his sleep.

Luso rolled over and started to do pushups **while still sleeping**.

"For the love of-"

Chrom took two steps back then kicked the bed, causing the entire wooden frame to collapse.

While the wanton destruction of the bed was spectacular and completely accidental -as the kick was only supposed to shock Luso into waking up- it had the intended effect.

" Frederick, don't eat me, I don't taste any good! I'm too stringy and don't have that much meat! I swear to god I taste just like bear!"

"What kind of dreams are you having?" Chrom said with a scowl. He tugged at Luso's hands and tried to peel them off his shoulder. "And stop clinging to me!"

Luso blinked a few times, and stopped shivering. "Oh, It's you. Sorry."

"It's time to march Luso. Get your pack, and get ready to march."

Luso strung his pack over his shoulder. It was strangely heavier then it was last night, but that wasn't a real problem. He was stronger than he was in the other world, making the extra weight more of a hindrance rather than a horrible burden.

The rest of the group was already packed and ready, and waiting in the common area. Vaike was laughing at some joke Luso didn't hear, and Maribelle was hitting the man over the head with her umbrella. Ricken was lying on the couch, a cast on his right arm, with Lissa fussing over him with her magic staff in hand.

Frederick was walking back and forth dusting everything in sight causing Robin to sneeze.

Lastly Chrom was standing by the door tapping his foot to pass the time. He didn't have to wait long, a gentle rap came on the other side within two minutes.

When Chrom opened the door, Luso swore the lady on the other side had a heart attack. The red haired Pegasus knight instantly paled, blushed and started stammering out a statement so vague no one could make heads or tails out of it.

Eventually the lady had to be dragged away by Philia, and the Knight Captain spoke to Chrom herself. "Sir. We have two pieces of information to relay to you. We have managed to obtain a convoy for the journey north so any items that are heavy but useful can be brought along. Second the Pegasus knights will accompany you on the journey north, up until you reach the borders of Ferox. Although we may not be yours to command, our spears are here to support you. "

"Got it." Robin said with a smirk. "So where is this convoy of yours?"

"It is on the borders of Ylisstol. I will take you there."

With that Philia whirled around and started to walk in the opposite direction, dragging the still stuttering Pegasus Knight with her.

"Alright! Everyone check that you have your weapons! We don't want any issues like last time." Chrom bellowed while glaring at Vaike.

"It was only once! Don't worry I have it right here!" The man protested while hefting his iron axe over his head.

Luso quickly glanced over his sword and tightened his sword belt.

It was time to march.

* * *

"Umm. Hello? My-my n-name is Olivia sire. I'm with the convoy going north."

This was getting ridiculous. First white, then Blue, then red- not orange- but actual crimson hair, and now Pink. It was official. The genes in Ylisse were completely different then home.

Luso dropped his bag and placed it into the covered wagon. At this point nothing would faze him when it came to unnatural things about people.

The convoy started to move slowly, roughly at a brisk walk, allowing most of the people to converse while marching.

"So this convoy... It goes straight up to Ferox?" Chrom asked. "Why is this convoy even going there?"

"It's for the battle over a new head Khan. Everyone in this Convoy is heading back to see the selection process and the celebration afterwards." Olivia stammered quietly.

"It must be an exciting selection process." The prince replied with a grin. "Is there a reason you are going? Like a specific thing at the party or the like? I can't imagine you being interested in the haggling of old men over who will be the next Khan."

"I'm a dancer Milord. And not a very good one at that, but... The Khan favors me and asked me to perform at the celebration." Olivia wrapped her cloak even tighter around her. "I don't know why."

"A dancer?" Chrom shrugged. "Do you mind If you show me a dance? If of course you can dance while walking"

"Um, certainly." Olivia stammered. She threw off her cloak and revealed an extremely revealing outfit.

"Brygredtjssjebf!" Luso turned away his adolescent mind fried from the sight of the lady alone, much less the dance itself. His hands covering his face, Luso quickly ran behind one of the wagons.

"I'm far too young to see that. Give me six years. I should have known when I heard dancer." The mercenary stuttered as he walked towards of the head of the convoy. He needed the extra exercise anyways. Philia was up at the head of the convoy speaking to Frederick about his habit of running ahead and picking up stones. Although Luso cringed at the sight of the Great Knight, he didn't let that stop him from going up to her.

"Hey" Luso said. "So where is your Pegasus?"

"In the back of the Convoy with the other horses. It is difficult for them to fly such long distances you know." Philia replied. She smirked slightly before saying. "Did you expect them to be able to fly all the way to Ferox non stop?"

"Ugh. No sorry." Luso said embarrassed.

"Now that I answered one of your questions, answer one of mine. What made your face that crimson when you came up here?" Philia poked Luso in the ribs. "Was it embarrassing? Tell me."

Luso let out a slight eep, before looking away. "Can I ask you something else?"

"I would prefer if you told me but sure, Shoot."

Luso paused for just a second. "When you were with the Exalt, err after the stampeding incident, you were much more stiff and formal. Is that normal for you?"

"One of us has to maintain decorum before the Exalt. I'm a professional." Philia said sternly.

Her face shifted back to a teasing smile. "Now tell me what made your face like that."

"Monsters! Flesh eating demons on the North road!" A merchant ran screaming down the street.

"Um... To arms!" Luso turned away and ran down the caravan shouting. "To arms!"

"Two arms is no such answer!" Philia jested as she rushed back to get on her Pegasus. "Elaborate more!"

* * *

Being a risen chief was strange. Most risen had no sense of self, no being, no mind or soul. But the chiefs were different. In order to command their pack and to keep them in order, the chiefs had some degree of intelligence. The chiefs was by no means genii but it could remember certain things, like the faces of the meat bags who wiped out his first army.

Worst of all right when he had finally got serious, two meat bags hid in a house which later collapsed on its head.

The fiends! It had taken him an entire day to dig itself out of the ruins, and to make matters worse they had taken his short axe with them.

The memory alone infuriated the risen chief. What infuriated it even more was those two damn humans were standing right in front of him. And they had an army behind them. The risen chief knew that attacking was stupid. It was outnumbered, and the enemy had a knight with a silver lance, not to mention several more units, including a team of five Pegasus knights when his force lacked even a single archer- but at this point the risen chief didn't even give a damn.

It was going to attack.

The Risen roared a shout of challenge and ordered all of its men(creatures? Monster?) forward.

In roughly ten minutes, the risen chief's forces was scattered, broken, defiled and looted. The Chief cursing the heavens over his incompetent force. As it dissolved into dust, it groaned in sadness over being killed by a man who forgot his axe.

Its groans ended abruptly when Frederick, stepped on the remains of the risen while picking up weapons off of the battlefield. Ylisse's finest knight smirked as he came across a weapon lying on the ground. It was magnificent, glorious even, and was in danger of being stepped on by a _Certain_ mercenary.

"...Hmm? I'd better pick this up lest someone stumble on it..." The great knight screamed as he knocked Luso over to obtain the weapon that he so desired.

It was safe to say Frederick liked his new tree branch.

* * *

**The general idea of Luso, Robin's and Virion's predicament came from Gintama. The execution and specific gags are made by me.**

**Sorry how disjointed this chapter was. I tried to make it flow better but all attempts were worse then this one. Bleh.**

**Anyways, I do not own anything. Tada!**


	8. Of Cooks and Men

**"There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a beautiful woman in the act of cooking dinner for someone she loves."**  
**― Thomas Wolfe**

* * *

The march to Ferox was quite long and boring, but it was spiced up by the banter of the other Shepherds. Most of the conversation was entertaining. Some of it was just plain irritating.

"When we take a break, anyone want to go a round with Teach?"

"Hey Luso, what are you doing?"

"Aren't you a little bit interested in that Olivia girl? You turned away when she was dancing man!"

It wasn't that he disliked Vaike, he actually enjoyed his company as it was funny at times. It just got out of control.

Luso grimaced as the fighter slapped him on the back and said.

"Hehe, did you see me in action Squirt! The Vaike showed ya how it's done!"

* * *

_**Two Hours Earlier**_

"Ha-ha! There's two! Can you keep up with me newbie!"

Vaike laughed and smashed his axe into another Risen's forehead. The creature faded to dust groaning in pain.

"Not my problem!" Luso muttered. "Stay back!" The mercenary swung his sword wildly trying to throw a risen onto the ground.

"Virion! Feather that guy!" Robin shouted as he smashed an axe wielder with his sword. "Chrom with me!"

"We're not done yet!" The prince twisted his sword around and decapitated the axe wielder, the helmet flying away and landing behind a hill.

"Sorry I'm late! Stopped for breakfast!" Stahl yelled as he rode into the battlefield.

"Just join the party! Its Vaike time!" The axe man charged straight towards a risen holding a steel lance with his weapon over his head. The creature's red eyed narrowed as it drew back it's weapon. "Gwarg!"

"Hang on Vaike I'm coming!"

* * *

"Sorry Vaike, I know about how many Risen you plowed through but the only thing I can remember is when you got stabbed twice by that spearman and hid behind Stahl until you got healed." Luso muttered out of sheer frustration. "Weapons triangle be damned!"

"Hey! That happened once!" Vaike muttered nervously. "Fine twice."

"And who forgets their axe? Come on!"

"Squirt! It looks you want to get hurt!" Vaike laughed and smacked Luso on the back. "You seem to forget when you dropped your sword and ran from that big one! Philia had to bail you out there man!"

"My left arm was broken by that oversized chief!"

"Heh, see!"

" Some of us are trying to sleep here!" Sully muttered angrily. "Come on! This place in the convoy is for the disabled! Wounded soldiers only you know."

"And we aren't? The psychological damage from combat is irreversible! I shall never be the same again."

"Get out!"

With a single kick, the both the fighter and the mercenary were kicked out of the carriage.

"Jerk."

"Attractive though huh?" Vaike grinned. "Did ya see that?"

"See what?" The area around the convoy was pretty dusty now that he thought about it.

"C'mon the armor she wears covers a lot, but when she kicked us out, she was wearing a set of normal clothing. If you looked carefully..."

"I am far too young." Luso muttered. Fifteen may be at the age of hormones, but he could at least abstain from that.

"Squirt, you can't be much younger than me."

Oh right. In this world, his body was twenty? Twenty-two? It was actually kind of freaky. "So being older means being lecherous?" Luso replied.

"Nah! But you can't be a man if you don't at least have an interest. Could it be that you swing-"

"No." Luso snapped.

"Don't worry, if you do then the Vaike don't mind."

"I am not gay."

"Are you sure?" Vaike smiled cheekily.

"Do you want me to be?"

"Nah. I don't really care." Vaike shook his head, and clapped Luso on the back. "But are you?"

"Can you stop talking about this?" Robin mumbled. "I already have problems with this."

Luso raised an eyebrow and muttered. "What did you say?"

"Nothing." The tactician replied wearily. "Speaking of which, the convoy is slowing down. Do you think we will stop for the night?"

"I doubt that we can reach Ferox in one day. I think so yeah."

"Who do you think is cooking today?" Robin muttered.

"I hope it ain't Sully." Vaike said with a grin. "The entire convoy would be dead by nightfall."

"My stomach can't take another one of those so soon." Robin muttered. "And there is no way me, or anyone else could possibly make other arrangements so late, so I can only hope. Besides most likely, the convoy has its own cook. "

The head of the convoy settled down and stopped just ten minutes ago. When the three reached the foremost of the trail, Two burly men were already setting up a series of tents for sleeping alongside the road and a mess tent next to a pair of trees.

"Hmm. We get tents. I'm going to check mine." Robin mumbled.

"The Vaike is gettin first pick on tents!"

"I'm more worried about the food. " Luso slid open the flap to the kitchen. The only person inside was Sully wearing an apron over a set of thick traveling robes.

"Sully? Are you cooking?" Luso said nervously.

"Of course." Sully snorted. "It's still my shift you know."

"Doesn't the convoy have a chef already? Some random guy assigned that job? A monkey with a pot?" Sully's glare was cold enough to freeze even the sun. Shivers ran down Luso's spine as she said. "Excuse me?"

"Ha-ha..." Luso laughed nervously, "Um, it's a difficult task to cook for the entire convoy. I thought it might be a bit overwhelming you know?"

"If you want to say, I'm not womanly, go ahead and say it. Hell if I care." Sully grinned. "You need to get some backbone and speak your mind."

"If being cowardly will save my life, a coward I will be. I think that if I did say that, you will shank me with that spear of yours." Luso muttered while grabbing at a pile of cloth.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!"

Sully groaned and grabbed a bag of assorted vegetables and dropped then in a scattered heap next to a small wooden table. "What I meant was why are you putting on that apron?"

"I'm going to help you. God knows the amount of people in the Convoy is too high, and I wasn't assigned any chores yet so I don't really have anything better to do." -_not to mention we would all die if you cooked again_ Luso thought.

"Really. Well thanks. The recipe book is on that table over there."

The book was lying open, a picture of a pot of stew was drawn on the corner. The text however was a stream of unknown characters, a series of elaborate squiggles he couldn't make heads or tails of. Seriously? The previous owner couldn't read?

Luso closed his eyes and focused, but the letters drifted away and vanished, unable to understand a single written letter. Great. Another obstacle in daily life. There went one of his free time activities.

"Um, Sully? How about you read these out loud, and get the other stuff while I get a head start with the cooking? I could do two batches, while you do the other."

"Sure." Sully muttered. "The first step is prepare the vegetables. It needs to be enough for all of us though." The cavalier gestured towards threw huge cooking pots.

"Not a problem." The vegetables would have to be rinsed in water, many were still covered in dirt. Next the various potatoes and onions and other ones like that would have to be peeled. It was a simple task, only daunting by the sheer number. Luso sighed as he checked the knife on the counter. It was sharp. At least that was going for him.

Luso started to hum a cheerful tune as he worked at washing and peeling the foodstuffs.

The trance was blown away by the rasp of metal and the sound of a sickening chop.

"All done." Sully said with a smile.

"Sully?" Luso raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"If you don't wash away the dirt, the stew will taste like it. Secondly, not many people like the outer layers of potatoes or onions in stew, so it will be wise to remove them. Lastly, a two handed overhead swing to chop seven vegetables with a kitchen knife is not going to end well."

The knight groaned and dropped the kitchen knife onto the small table. Luso winced as it clattered.

"Ugh. How do you chop vegetables then?"

Luso sighed and picked up one of the potatoes and dropped it on the table. Twelve seconds later a potato was diced into roughly twenty small slices.

"One smooth motion. It's all in the wrist." The mercenary said with a smirk. "Can you keep up?"

"Humph! You're on!" Sully replied. "Next step is boiling the vegetables and preparing the soup stock!"

"Bring it!"

"To Hell with you!"

* * *

"Was the flying tackle to stop me from putting in spices really necessary?"

"A man once said 'There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a woman cooking dinner for those she cares for.' I disagree. In this case it was terrifying! You were going to throw in thirty five peppers to give it an extra kick! The recipe only says for one or two!"

"Heh, whatever, I didn't smack you when you substituted basil for rosemary. While you weren't looking I sampled some of the stew. You really are good at cooking aren't you? Not many men are."

"I'm okay." Luso threw another piece of wood underneath the fire.

"Could I ask you how you got to be at that level?"

"My mother worked, so I would often be alone in the house. Cooking became something I did often." Luso stirred the soup twice, not really looking at anything else."I had to get good at it eventually."

"What about your father?"

He was walking to Walmart to buy eggs when he was run over by an idiot in a red sedan texting his girlfriend.

"I don't want to talk about it." Luso muttered. "It's personal. It's time to serve dinner. Do you know where the soup bowls are?"

"Over there. Chrom is going to scream when he tries this one!"

"I hope not." Luso shivered.

* * *

"I got this strange feeling that someone is talking about me." Chrom muttered as he bashed a training target. The wooden sword he was using snapped in two on impact and fell to the floor as a pile of splinters.

"I think twelve practice swords is enough for today. Chrom, it's getting late. Should we get dinner now?" Robin picked up his books and waved over the training field for the prince to join him.

"Sure Robin. Sounds like a plan." The two ambled their way towards the cook tent, laughing and joking along the way. The two were in an excellent mood and were famished from all the training.

"Alright! Listen up! Take the bowls one at a time! And if you don't eat all of it, I'll throw you to Frederick!"

Suddenly they weren't so hungry anymore. Robin gripped his stomach recalling his first meal with the Shepherds, and Chrom's face was green from memories of cake, soup, and even simple dishes like toast.

The two watched in horror as members of the convoy all walking around the area grabbing bowls of soup from Sully. Many of them were waiting for their friends to come, forming small cliques. Not a single one had taken a bite.

"Gods! They're going to eat it! Robin we have to stop them! None of them have eaten yet, they can be saved!"

"Chrom it's too late! Stay away!" The tactician grabbed the prince's cape and yanked him back. The two men paled as Olivia raised her spoon to her lips.

And she sipped it seemingly without any harm.

"I must have been wrong in my assessment of her. That woman has a stomach of steel." Robin muttered.

"No." Chrom said. "All of them are eating it. It can't be mere coincidence. Let us taste it first."

"As the tactician, I think you should try it first. You are much stronger then I am."

Chrom hesitated before taking a bowl of the stew from Sully. He looked at the bowl as if the blood of the fell dragon itself was mixed into it.

Then he hesitated.

It took all his willpower not to throw the bowl at the wall and run. But he focused, raised a spoon to his lips and ate.

It tasted good.

Impossible.

"Chrom? Why are you crying?" Luso asked, approaching the table in a chef's apron.

"Luso." Robin asked politely. "Did you cook this?"

"Sully cooked. I just helped."

"We both know that's a lie." Robin said after tasting the stew.

" Someone in the Shepherds can actually cook." Chrom said in shock. "I can't believe it. Vaike runs from chores, Lissa and Maribelle can only brew tea, Stahl eats all the ingredients so there is nothing left to cook, and Frederick can, but he always takes it to the extreme."

"Its just stew." Luso raised an eyebrow. "Its not even that good!"

"When one goes through hell, even the ordinary seems to be paradise." Robin noted, scraping his spoon against the bottom of the dish. "Seconds?"

* * *

God damn it, Ferox was cold.

It had been two weeks since they had departed from Ylisstol, and two hours since they entered the Feroxi territory. For Luso it was two hours too much.

Snow blew all around the convoy, ice forming on the water skins, and causing the wagons to slip as they crossed over hills. Luso shivered as he marched alongside the horses. Many of the Shepherds had taken to wearing cloaks that Frederick distributed during his fanatic fitness hour sessions. After his first encounter with that class, Luso had no mind to go anywhere near the man, even if it did mean that he could get a fancy new cloak.

Shivering one more time, Luso flexed his fingers. They could bend. That was a good sign.

"How much further." The mercenary's teeth chattered as he continued to walk.

"Till we reach Ferox?" Philia muttered. "Just a little bit longer. After we reach the edge of the Longfort, I'm taking the Pegasus knights back to Ylisse."

"Can I come with you? I want to keep all my toes, I could always transfer to the Pegasus knights you know. Change my name to Bellaphron and all. "

"No. You are a Shepherd." Philia grinned. "The pegasus knights don't have any male members. Good luck in Ferox!"

Luso wrapped his leather jacket around him even tighter. "Sexist, feministic,"

"Let me cut you off right there." Philia said darkly. "Men and Pegasi don't really get along."

"So Chrom should have expected getting kicked by that Pegasus Sumia had."

"Precisely. "

Their conversation was rudely interrupted by the sound of a great shout. Evidently, something was going on.

Luso reached down to his waist and drew his iron sword. "Something is going on Philia."

"I noticed. I'll take you to the front lines."

By the time they arrived, the situation was shaky.

"The only thing I requested was to meet the Khan! I even escorted a Feroxian Convoy for Naga's sake!"

"My only interest is keeping you out of Regna Ferox, brigand!"

Very shaky.

Chrom glared at the man in armor guarding the fort. "But we are not Brigands!" He shouted. "What does it take?"

"Milord." Frederick said. "The Feroxian people value strength above all else. It would be best if we prepared for battle. Robin, loath as I am to trust him, may provide ideas for our formation. Try negotiating with the Commander, but the rest of us will prepare for battle."

The tactician glared at Frederick before clapping his hands together. All of the Shepherds gathered together behind a hill, while the Convoy backed off to avoid being damaged.

"Alright. All of you listen to me." Robin said. "From what I could tell, most of the forces in the Longfort were armored knights, fighters, and archers. Stahl, Sully, you two are taking the left wing. If one of you two gets injured, switch who takes point so neither one of you dies."

"Got it." Stahl nodded.

"Understood." Sully said with a smirk.

"Vaike, Luso, you two are backing Frederick up. Luso, keep an eye out for Vaike and help him aim. He has a tendency to use too much force and over swing."

"Teach is in the house!" Vaike flexed his arms.

"I'll do my best." Luso glanced over at his partner. As his partner was shaking axe around in a pre-battle victory dance, a dark haze fell upon him, it's very presence chilling him to the bone- at least the bones that weren't already frozen. When the shadow was gone, a glowing blue circle was branded onto Vaike's chest, the number on it counting down slowly.

"Hey guys what was that?" Luso muttered.

"Huh?" Robin said after finishing giving Lissa her orders

"Those marks on Vaike's chest! Did he always have them?"

"I don't know what you are talking about Luso."

Was he seeing things?

The mercenary blinked twice and looked again. Sure enough, the marks were gone.

"Argh!"

The Shepherds quickly turned towards Chrom's, with no less than seven lances flying towards him.

"Damn it! Somebody help him!" Robin shouted. "Everyone, to your places!"

As if responding to Robin's call, a snow white pegasus flew by Chrom's side, it's rider dragging him out of harm's way.

"Captain!" Sumia said out of breath. "I'm glad you are safe."

"Is this the same Pegasus that kicked me in the face?" Chrom said as the winged horse landed next to the tactician.

"She's a sweetheart when you get to know her." Sumia stroked the Pegasus's coat. "I've heard that Pegasi and arrows don't go well together. I'll keep you away from the mean archers ok?" She cooed while rubbing the creature's neck.

"Shepherds! Try not to kill them if possible!" Chrom bellowed while drawing his sword. "We want to avoid diplomatic incident!"

"Just to make my life harder, We get a Pegasus knight when the area is teaming with Bowmen, and a restriction on mortal injuries while the enemy considers us bandits and wants to skewer us on a lance. This is just great." Robin bantered back. The tactician unsheathed his sword and directed the prince to draw his rapier instead of Falchion."They're coming, be on your guard!"

* * *

_**I don't own anything, and do not make any money. Please do not sue. **_

_**On the otherhand, please read and review!**_


	9. The Longfort

**Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.**

**William Shakespeare**

* * *

His battle started with an ordinary soldier, Luso attempting to block a well aimed lance thrust with his shield. The Ferox impaled the iron and leather buckler easily with his steel lance, and twisted it, tearing at Luso's armor. While the man was pulling on the weapon, Luso grabbed onto the shaft of the spear and yanked at it trying to take it from the soldier.

The two engaged in a brief struggle, grappling over the weapon until the soldier decided enough was enough and punched Luso in the face, forcing him to let go.

The mercenary retaliated by bashing the poor man's face in with the ruined pieces of his buckler. Even the greatest barbarians would be in pain after three blows with a hunk of twisted metal.

"Vaike! How's it going!"

"Good! These guys can't stop the teach!" After the soldiers had been softened up by Virion, Vaike chopped the second soldier's lance in half and was chasing him around like a headless chicken. An arrow was embedded in his left shoulder and the red gouge from a lance was in his side.

Vaike slammed the soldier against the wall of the fort and threw him against the ground, before tearing the arrow out of his arm and pouring a vulnerary onto his shoulder.

Speaking of arrows, the archers that had fired the arrows towards them were having a moment with Stahl and Sully. It did not involve a fancy restaurant and fine wine.

Wincing slightly at the archer's predicament, Luso glanced behind him, two archers as well as a knight were giving chase to the group.

"Everyone retreat! We need to fall back into a more open area so we can flank them!" Robin threw another bolt of lightning towards a fallen knight, scorching and mutilating his arms and legs so he couldn't move or swing a lance.

"Bit brutal don't you think!" Luso murmured as he ran backwards.

"It is necessary." Robin clenched his fist and a ball of electrical energy gathered into his palm.

"You know Robin, have you ever considered just smashing your fist into someone with that magic activated and screaming Chidori?" Luso brandished his sword as an arrow landed by his feet. The boy bit his tongue as he continued to run back into a snow covered plain.

"Why would I ever do that!"

"Nothing, Just thought it would look cool."

Robin scowled and drew his bronze sword. "Enough!" He turned and faced the Feroxian guard just as the last soldier passed the walls. "All Shepherds! Strike them!"

Chrom was the first one on the battlefield, his rapier wedged between two armor plates on a knight.

He tackled the soldier and knocked him over while Vaike broke his lance with his axe.

Frederick was riding forward, his Silver lance brutally hacking off an archer's leg as he passed, while Sully and Stahl backing away from the battle to nurse their wounds.

The second Feroxian archer drew back his bow and fired an arrow into Vaike's leg, the bolt sheering through his thigh. The fighter's leg trembled from strain, and Vaike fell to his knees.

"Vaike!" Robin shouted as he threw another bolt of lightning. "How are you holding up!"

"Don't worry! Teach could take another three arrows before healing!"

The second archer aimed his bow again and drew back a second shot.

"Not this time!" Luso dove in the way and blocked the arrow with his shield. The mercenary rushed forward and slammed his sword down on the archer's bow, causing the oiled wood to snap. "Sorry about this!" He rammed the archer into the wall, knocking him down.

"Was that fine Robin?" Luso shouted as he looked back.

Robin nodded and said something but that was inconsequential.

Because Vaike's strange mark reappeared on his chest, and this time the clock's hands pointed to the 12:00.

The archer Frederick had wounded was lying on the snow covered field with bow in hand. He deftly fired an arrow into Vaike's side, the bolt slamming into the fighter's chest.

"Die Brigand!" The archer cried as he nocked a second arrow.

"No!"

The second arrow pierced through Vaike's neck, tearing a gash straight through his spinal cord. The fighter fell to the ground, dead. "C-Chrom...take up the torch..." he gurgled just before falling.

Just like that he was gone.

Vaike seemed like such a cool guy. A little overbearing, but a nice person. People had died, he had killed bandits himself, but now someone he knew, one of the good guys had fallen.

Luso took a few steps forward, his shoes stained by bloody snow.

"Damn you! Damn you to hell!" Luso screamed as he ran towards the legless archer, his sword overhead. The sheer terror in the Feroxi archer's eyes were only matched by his scream.

As Luso swung his sword to kill, just one strike to avenge him. Blood for blood motivated him, an eye for an eye and a life for a life never seemed to be more true than this moment.

The archer closed his eyes as the weapon hurtled towards him.

"Stop it." Chrom said as he blocked Luso's strike. "Killing that soldier has no purpose. We came here to negotiate with the Khan and ask her for assistance."

"He killed Vaike! How can you defend his murderer like that? Wasn't he your friend?" Luso shouted as he struck again only to have Chrom block the strike again. The clash of swords created a great klanging sound which caused several of the soldiers to look to see what was going on. They winced as Chrom slapped Luso across the face.

"You're right. He was a very close friend of mine. I want vengeance more than anyone else! But to do so would be wrong! Repaying blood for blood cannot be condoned." His cheek still burning Luso was knocked backwards into the snow. The Ylissian prince looked down sadly as Luso sputtered and shouted. "His last words were to you! He asked to take up the torch! And you would do this?"

"Do you know Vaike?" Chrom said. "Where he came from? Why he even joined the Shepherds?"

"No!"

"Vaike grew up in the slums before joining the Shepherds, and fought to be a great hero for those who stayed behind! He wanted his life and death to mean something." Chrom turned away. "That is why we must do what is right. The thirst for vengeance should not be quenched with bloodshed, but rather by actions that Vaike would have wanted. Killing that archer would only cause trouble between us and the Feroxi and only make it harder to protect Ylisse and his hometown."

"Fine." Luso sheathed his sword. "I won't."

"While this is all touching, I believe that the time to talk is over and the time to fight is now." A lady in heavy armor stated. "I am Raimi, the knight in charge of this fortress. From what I've heard, even if you are brigands, you have some sense of honor. I will grant you an honorable fight, and if you truly are Prince Chrom, then no doubt you will be strong without measure. You in the leather armor, unsheathe your sword, you cannot fight without it."

"Just when I put it away too." Luso said angrily. "First of all, this system of strength makes no sense. If bandits could beat you, then would you randomly accept them as Lords? How is combat skill relevant in identification, when nobility or lordship is determined by birth! Second in these needless struggles, people die. How can you even partake in these things? It's because of you that he's dead! Why!"

With a single spear thrust, Luso was thrown back several feet, the lance tearing through his shoulder plate. "A silver tongue won't strike down your enemies. If you aren't going to fight, then stay back- Weakling." Raimi spat as she raised her lance again.

"Stay back!" Robin muttered grimly. "Luso, she's baiting you, you can't possibly hurt her. That armor she's wearing will deflect any blow you can do! Leave this to Chrom and I. Pair up with Frederick, Luso, and fight her reinforcements. That's the best thing you can do."

The tactician closed his eyes and let magic gather in his palm, as Chrom sheathed Falchion and drew his rapier. His eyes burned with righteous fury and his arm trembled in anger.

As Chrom, Robin, and Raimi played the deadly game of swords and sorcery, Luso and Frederick rode out towards the edge of the fortress. Two fighters ran down the stairs to greet them.

"Scorned twice in one day. I'm in no mood to do this. Let's make this quick." Luso muttered as he drew his sword.

"Milord is in danger. I too wish to resolve this conflict swiftly and return to his side." Frederick nodded in agreement as he switched his lance for a bronze sword.

"Don't get careless." Frederick said as Luso ducked underneath a wild swing. The mercenary smashed his sword against the fighter's temple. Frederick slammed the fighter in the chest with his weapon, knocking him out cold. "Alas for you." The knight said sharply when he struck the defeated fighter in the arm.

The second axe man rushed forward, this time in his arm was a hammer. Frederick stared at the heavy weapon in astonishment. His brow knit together as he watched the man approach.

"I've got you." Luso said as the soldier rushed forward. Frederick smiled grimly and waited for the fighter to get within range. With a single flick of the reins his horse leaped backwards avoiding the armor piercing weapon. "Pick a god and pray!" Ylisse's finest knight promptly slashed the poor man's weapon in half with a single blow, and proceeded to glare at him.

"Or maybe you don't need it." The mercenary said as the Feroxi soldier rolled onto his belly and played dead.

"I surrender." Raimi said lowering her head when she saw her reinforcements fall. The knight had two deep wounds by her side and the scorch marks from a lightning spell on her shoulder, yet she did not even stutter once when she said politely. "Truly you fight well, Prince Chrom. I will take you to the East Khan."

"It's over." Robin sighed as he clutched his arm. Blood was seeping out of various places on his body.

"Finally." Chrom muttered. "Every last one of you go get healed. The last thing we need is for another person to die of blood loss."

The prince knelt by the snow and picked up Vaike's body and heaved it over his shoulder.

"Send him back to Ylisse. It's what he would have wanted." Chrom said sadly as he placed the corpse into the convoy wagon.

"Milord..." Frederick stuttered. "I know this is a bad time but Raimi is leaving."

"Fine. It looks like we're meeting with the khan a little bit ahead of schedule. You doing okay Robin?"

"Fine.". The tactician mumbled. "Lissa patched me up. No holes in me so far."

"Alright then, let's get out of the cold and meet the Khan."

* * *

The shepherds were led into a throne room. Lissa and Stahl immediately plopped down next to the fireplace, in the corner and started to talk. The rest of the Shepherds on the other hand remained standing at attention expecting the ruler of such a fierce people to arrive.

Raimi noted the tension in the room and said formally. "Please wait here while I fetch the Khan. It will be just a minute."

"The Khan isn't home?" Robin asked quietly. The tactician gave up on standing and slumped onto the fur carpet and took upon feeling every single tear in his beloved coat.

"Probably out training." Chrom said. "The khans of Ferox prefer battle to politics. Or rather, battle IS their politics."

Robin smiled slightly. "A warrior ruler, eh? I can picture him now… A giant of a man of unparalleled thew, his broad chest covered in hair, heheh..."

"And in order to avoid having his hair pulled in battle, his head is shaven smoother then a baby's bottom. Wherever he goes, a magnificent battle-axe is always by his side, and his physical strength is only surpassed by the sheer number of jokes he makes in and out of battle- more so if they aren't always funny." Luso said while tapping on his fingers.

Robin laughed, before adding. "And in order to state his seniority, he calls everyone younger than him son, or something like that. And despite seeming to be more of a warrior than anyone else, this Khan is actually quite intelligent, capable of out-smarting his wife or colleges who insult him."

"Wait, Robin. Did the Shepherds have a dark skinned, blonde lady in the army?" Luso asked.

Chrom raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"

"Because there is someone who matches that description standing behind Robin." Luso shivered slightly, and it wasn't from the cold.

"My name is Flavia, I'm the East Khan." The lady cracked her knuckles in anticipation. "Would you two mind repeating what you just said?"

Robin and Luso exchanged a look. Robin bit his lip and slowly dragged his finger across his throat. The meaning was clear. He was in greater peril then he was then he was with Anna, Maribelle, or even Frederick. Hell, he was in greater peril then when he was fighting against the Risen or the brigands. Luso paled as Flavia slowly approached him.

**Fuck his life.**

* * *

"Now that that's dealt with, let's move onto the main subject. I cannot grant you the alliance you seek Chrom." Flavia said, dusting her hands off as Luso was crying in a twisted heap that previously could be called his limbs.

"Why not!" The prince protested. "Aren't you the Khan?"

"One of the Khans." Flavia said. "Not the Khan Regent, the ruler of the Khans."

"Damn it. Vaike's death was for nothing then." Chrom looked away, on the verge of tears. "Absolutely nothing."

"Not so! The next tournament is nigh, my border guards tell me that your Shepherds are very capable. I'm sure that you can fight for me. If you win this tournament, then I will grant your alliance. This I promise you."

"We'll do it." Chrom nodded. "Whomever we fight, we will defeat for Ylisse's necessity."

"Ha!" Flavia barked out a heavy laugh. "I like you already, prince. We will meet again later. Raimi will fetch you for the tournament in three days and take you to the arena. Consider up until then, Prep time."

With that, the Khan left the room. Lissa walked over and used her heal staff on Luso, and the mercenary crumpled into a heap.

"Violent woman." Luso muttered. "So all we have to do is win and she grants us an alliance? What's stopping her from blowing us off?"

"She wouldn't." Robin said. "She may be rough, but she seems to be an honorable person. Besides this is a give and take offer, they'll be no reason to do such a thing."

"I guess you're right." Luso muttered as he stretched his legs. "So, bedtime for Bonzos?"

Chrom nodded somberly. "Sure, why not. Let's try to wake up early so we can train a bit though."

With that the Shepherds left to go to their respective guest rooms.

Robin stayed behind and grabbed onto Luso's shoulder.

"Luso, I need your help with something."

"What is it?"

"I need you to find out as much as possible about the rules of this arena match and our opponents. Especially data about the opposing champion. Tell me all you know during the strategy meeting." Robin said grimly.

"Alright I get it." Luso looked down. "I'll see what I can do, but I'm no spy. Don't expect much."

"It's alright." Robin slapped the mercenary on the back. "Go get some sleep."


	10. Luka the Gladiator

**Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.**

**Elbert Hubbard**

** o-O-o**

All of the Shepherds woke up on time, even Stahl who usually slept late. Not a single person wanted to slack, especially after what happened to Vaike.

The training fields were thick with the soldiers, many of them paired off and beating each other up with sticks. Chrom was sparring (And beating up) Robin, while Stahl was being verbally berated by an enraged Sully lecturing him about the story of Cain and Abel.

On the opposite side of the field was a different story.

"Form number three. Draw above head, slash, turn while striking with both hands."

Luso muttered as he quickly flipped his sword out of the sheathe and stabbed the air in front of him.

Frederick stared passively at the mercenary as Luso muttered, "Form number four, Slash, pivot, slash and... Gwaa! Frederick! How long have you been standing there?"

The Knight merely smiled and said. "While your forms aren't Ylissian by nature, they are complex and not self taught. It was fascinating to watch, so to say."

"Umm, thank you." Luso scratched his head. "That was very flattering but it still didn't answer my question."

"May I ask you something?" The knight said while picking up a wooden sword.

"Sure Frederick, what is it?"

"How is it that you know forms that elegant, and flail your sword around like it's a dead badger on the battlefield. I rarely see you do any of the forms you practice in combat."

Luso paused and sheathed the sword he was practicing with. He sat down and shrugged. "I can practice all the complex moves I want, but when I step out onto the battlefield, I get so terrified that I forget every last one. The pressure of the practice grounds is different from the killing fields."

Frederick paused for a second before grabbing a second wooden sword.

"Then the answer is simple."

"What is?"

The knight flicked one of the swords above his head and slammed it down where Luso was sitting. The mercenary scrambled out of the way as he shouted. "Are you mad?"

"If you get used to using the form under pressure then you can use on the battlefield no? Come! We're going to spar until you use one of your forms on me!" The great knight charged after Luso with his training sword.

"Hya!"

"You are mad!" Luso cried as he grabbed the training sword. With two blows Luso was bowled over. This was going to be painful.

Frederick raised his sword over his head and...

CRACK!

* * *

After thirty minutes of constant whacking and being whacked, Luso eventually twisted his sword and hit the knight on the chest. Frederick sighed and dropped the sword, and went on to spar with Sully.

Luso left the training grounds as fast as his beaten legs would take him. He had a brand new collection of bruises from the battle that Lissa had found too minor to heal.

"Gah, why did I end up with Frederick again." Luso muttered as he limped through town. The hustle and bustle of Ferox attracted Luso to various shops or bars. The rich smell of grilled meat brought Luso closer to a certain building.

Sitting in one of the stalls was a heavily build bald man. He was tearing at a haunch laughing deeply.

"Ha! I feel that my position as Khan Regent is almost guaranteed!" The man said as he slapped a fighter on the back. "I've got the finest champion I've laid eyes on, and the greatest soldier to lead them."

"Ah, don't lie." The barkeeper laughed. "Its Lon'qu again isn't it. Finding a swordsman better than him is pretty much impossible isn't it."

"Perhaps" The bald man replied. "You'll have to find out at the tourney. I've got to go, I have a team to manage."

Luso's eyes glinted. He sensed an opportunity.

"Lon'qu huh?" Luso said while pulling up a seat. "It's my first time here for the games, can you tell me more about him? I know how skilled he is with his weapon, so I am just wondering do you know anything about him? Can you tell me his team-mates and the like?"

The bartender shivered slightly and backed away from Luso. "Um. Sure." The bartender said. "Just take this scroll on him and leave. It has rumors and records of his combat history. I'll sell it to you for six gold. If you want, I've got the stats of previous champions that could be in the battle, from Flavia's Raimi, to Basilo's-"

"Thank you." Luso said while pocketing the scroll. He dropped a small amount of gold onto the counter and left.

He then followed the bald man and asked the same questions. The bald man just laughed and gave Luso a second scroll saying that Lon'qu needed someone as he handed it over.

"That was oddly successful." Luso muttered. "Now time to investigate the rules of engagement."

Luso left the town after grabbing a hunk of black bread- food that definitely beat McDonald's- and met Flavia in the dining hall for lunch, tearing at some kind of T-bone steak or the like.

Luso's eye twitched when he smelled it. It definitely wasn't cow.

"So why are you staring? Want some Wyvern meat?" Flavia said as she tore off another hunk.

"I would first like to apologize for all the jokes I made." Luso muttered. "Secondly, I would like to ask for a favor."

"Hah! Think nothing of the jokes. What is the favor?"

"Robin wanted me to ask you about the technicalities of the battle for the Khanate. Nothing more, nothing less."

"I would be glad too." Flavia said, dropping the meat back onto her plate. "You are representing me in the arena, if the information helps you win, then it only helps me."

"Alright. Thank you." Luso nodded as he removed a notebook. "Please explain how the teams are divided..."

* * *

After two days of training and information gathering the Shepherds were exhausted. Chrom actually ordered everyone to go to sleep early, saying that 'we would be no good if we were sleep deprived during the battle.'

It wasn't wasn't easy sleeping with Frederick opening the door and staring every five minute to make sure the curfew was enforced but it was doable- After he was mentally intoxicated enough to attempt to strangle the great knight when he barged into the room at two in the morning and asked if he was sleeping, the great knight punched him unconscious in self defense .

So when Luso fell asleep, it was very very late. And like always, when a person sleeps late it is very difficult to wake them up, especially if when they are sleeping they are speaking to a higher power.

Within the world of Luso's dreams, an image of a man quietly emerged.

"Human, I'm here to ask how you're doing." The reaper said quietly.

"Everything is going fine. It's only a little strange, I'm fighting for my life, somehow managed to get myself into a small army, and stuck in a nation undergoing a zombie apocalypse."

"..."

"... Now that I think about it how the Hell is that a little strange." Luso muttered.

The reaper chuckled slightly at Luso's comment before saying. "You know, here's a factoid that might make things a little bit more strange. Apparently someone else in my division also screwed up so you've got another person from your world in here."

"Really?" Luso said. "Who is it?"

"Confidentiality agreement mortal, I'm not at liberty to say." Before he could protest the reaper cut him off. "Besides, how's the body, are you seeing things? Spiritual bodies can experience many things you know."

"Oh." Luso said. "Not really."

"If so." The Reaper closed his eyes. "Then see you later."

"Wait!"

The pale images of the clock flowed through Luso's mind. Was it possible?

"Actually Reaper, there is something I have to ask you, on one occasion I saw a clock imprinted on someone's chest. What are they?"

The reaper turned in surprise and let out a little yelp. "You can see those? Feces!"

"What kind of curse is that?"

The reaper scowled and muttered, "A polite one, thank you very much, but can you really see those things?"

"Clear as day." Luso nodded.

"Those are death day clocks, in the case of a fated death, we reapers will plant one on a person usually two days before their time. When the clock hits zero the person will die."

"I could tell that much. Do you plant them on everyone? Can I see only a small fraction of them?"

"God no! We only use death clocks in very special circumstances. Could we plant those clocks on every bird in the air? Every fish in the sea? Every microbe on your body? Humans, you think you are so special! We only use those on special things, when the death will do something that will impact the world. Most of the time, we let things just plain old die, and we ship them off to heaven or Hell! Let life select who lives and dies. Normally even people like you, people who came back, wouldn't be able to see them, but if you can..."

The reaper trailed off and paused. "I guess it means you are a soul irregular."

"An irregular?"

"Irregulars can see fated death. And are only people that can change it. People are not supposed to be able to change fate, but because you can see death's hand, you can guide it away. There are two qualifications to be a soul irregular, to be born again in a stranger's body, and for a mistake in the implantation of the soul. Because pieces of the soul remains outside of the body, your spirit's eye still remains, allowing you to see the paranormal."

"So if I manipulated Robin, into moving Vaike to the back of the formation..."

"The human named Vaike would have lived."

"That's awesome!"

"Fuck you." The reaper gave Luso the middle finger.

"What?"

"Soul irregulars are the most irritating thing for a Reaper. They fiddle around with death clocks and change fated deaths to screw with the system. We like having control of the hands of death! I hope when you try to change fate you knock the clock onto your own chest Asshole. You probably will. And when the clock touches your chest, you can never knock away death's hand. Hmph!"

"Wait!"

The morning light struck Luso's eyes as he woke up slowly. Then he saw Frederick two inches from his face and almost fainted from terror.

"Luso wake up. It's time for Robin's strategy meeting." Frederick droned.

"I'm up! Don't force me to train with you!"

"Good, go to the meeting room Flavia has graciously offered us. I'm going to get Stahl."

"Jesus Christ." Luso muttered. He looked down at his chest. The only thing there was the Aum crystal, no death clock.

So he had power, the ability to destroy fated death.

Luso grabbed his armor and slipped it on. Without a single moment of hesitation he picked up his notebook and grabbed the scrolls on Lon-qu.

Time to report his findings to Robin.

* * *

Robin chuckled as he called the Shepherds into the planning room. Luso sat on a chair in the corner, Chrom stood to the tactician's right drinking some water before the meeting started, Frederick was mending some of Chrom's small clothes, Sully wandered back and forth alongside the maps being hounded by Virion, and Stahl was eating about four slices of cake simultaneously. Miriel was reading a book, occasionally mumbling something as fire balls spontaneously appeared around her. Lissa and Sumia entered, one walking, the other tripping. Everyone was here, right on schedule, yet it seemed as if he forgot someone? It was really quite eerie. But no matter how eerie it got he had a job to do, and it was time to do what he did best. The tactician smirked as he unrolled a map of the arena onto the table that Flavia provided.

"Alright everyone, I'll be explaining the battle plan. Now traditionally, the champions are spread out and there are several one on one battles. The fighting continues until one side runs out of champions, whether that be by surrender or death."

Chrom gripped the bottle he was holding tightly, and muttered, "Doesn't seem like much tactics are involved here. Why is there a meeting?"

Robin smiled softly and said. "The problem is, judging by what I saw in our last clash, I am not confident in our abilities in one on one combat, especially since they have mages. If we had trouble against their border guards, one on one with West Ferox's finest can only be described as disastrous."

The meeting instantly turned into a massive uproar. Sully shouted that her "Skills were equal to any damn Ferox". Her statement pretty much summed up the general trend of what the shouting was all about.

After a few minutes however, the shepherds, at least the less hot-headed ones, had calmed down.

"Luso, how about you explain the information that you managed to get from our sponsor."

The mercenary nodded and got up from the chair. He removed his notebook that he had jotted some notes down from the Khan Flavia's lecture and started to read it aloud. "The battle in Arena Ferox over the jurisdiction over the ruler give an advantage to the current ruler, the ruling party can send out nine soldiers as representatives, while the challengers can only send out six."

Robin leaned back in his chair and said. "And the information on the leader of the enemy champions?"

"While we can't be certain, the West Khan has used the same champion over the past few tourneys. His name is Lonqu-and I have the scrolls on him right here." Luso muttered as he handed over a sheet of rolled up paper. "Getting this was a complete pain." The mercenary said sarcastically.

"Right, you did a good job. I found out what units the enemy will be using, so this and that will tip the scales far in our favor." Robin said snatching the scrolls away.

Chrom face palmed and took a few steps back. "Robin, Luso, isn't this considered cheating?"

"It technically isn't against the rules." Luso said with a smirk.

"Wait till you hear the strategy." Robin gave a slight wink. "Now since our enemies are spread out across the entire arena expecting one on one combat, no matter how fast they charge, they will come at us one or two at a time. Meaning we can have the ethics of a fell dragon, and rush them from every angle with all of our units. The only enemies that should be problems are the magicians, which Frederick can deal with quite well with his lance."

Chrom turned his head aside, and started drinking from the bottle of water. It was at times like these that the prince wished he carried alcohol.

Robin opened the scroll on Lonqu and started reading it while Chrom, Sully, and Frederick groaned. "I can't believe we are doing this."

They should have waited a few minutes before saying that statement.

"Hey Luso."

"What is it Robin?"

"It says that Lonqu's weakness is proximity to women."

Luso shrugged his shoulders and said, "So what? Send Sully after him then."

"Would fake breasts and a wig hinder any of your abilities to fight?"

Chrom sputtered on the water he was drinking and coughed a fine spray all over Robin's strategy books, now he prayed the water he had been drinking would magically turn into wine. Because he wasn't Jesus, the miracle sadly did not occur. Stahl swallowed the entire slice of cake he was eating whole without even chewing, and promptly received the Heimlich maneuver from Sully. Virion glared at Luso with a look that said, "What have you done." and proceeded to faint. Luso slammed his face onto the table. "I regret giving you that scroll already." The mercenary said in shock. "I... Never expected this to happen."

Frederick mysteriously managed to maintain a poker face. Never play cards with a Frederick.

"I'll take that as a no." Robin said cheerily. "Everyone can leave except for Chrom. It seems as though he wants to negotiate payment for the books he ruined. Shepherd, this strategy meeting is dismissed!"

* * *

"I have never been humiliated all my life." Frederick complained. The great knight was wearing a brown wig, which made his short hair twice as long as it usually was. He could forgo the other fake... assets as he was wearing a well defined chestplate which had already been hollowed out so he could wear a goddamn suit in battle.

"Shut up Frederick." Luso said angrily. "What I am curious about is why we have six spare suits of armor for female soldiers, when we don't even have six female soldiers to begin with."

"I realized that I can store sandwiches in the woman's cavalier armor! Sweet! I might just keep this on full time!" Stahl said happily. The knight pulled out a piece of bread and meat from under his armor and started to munch on it. "When do you think that the battle will start?"

Sully sighed at her male counterpart's cheerfulness, and gripped her lance tighter.

"How can you be happy with this!" Luso cried out. "I personally have two rubber... Umm...Things... Stuffed down my shirt and tied down with bandages! Not only is it uncomfortable, it makes me look completely ridiculous! What the Hell! The armor we're wearing makes us all look ridiculous!"

Robin strode in wearing a long white wig. The tactician smirked and put his hands on his hips and shook it seductively. "Luka, I have to disagree. We look fabulous."

"This is just perfect. My elite force is cross-dressing and my tactician is pretending to attempt to seduce a mercenary." Chrom muttered darkly. The Ylissian prince was the only one who was not dressed as a woman. Attempting to hide his shame, Chrom said in relief "At least I'm not subjected to that. Not the being seduced by a Tactician, but dressing as a woman that is."

Robin merely smiled, and dragged his arm around Chrom good naturedly. Then he quickly forced the lord into a chokehold. "Whomever said you were exempt? If we have to suffer, then you can suffer with the rest of us."

"But you came up with this plan!" Chrom protested as Sully went into the back room to find a suitable dress. The prince struggled to force Robin off him, and ended up succeeding after a few minutes. A sheen of nervous sweat fell from the prince's brow when he saw that Sully returned with a somewhat frilly dress.

"The logic is still sound." Luso- no Luka said with a sadistic grin. "You're not escaping Chrom. Dog-Pile!"

* * *

The gate to the Arena slowly creaked open revealing a cheering crowd.

His face completely flushed red out of embarrassment, the mercenary strode onto the battlefield. Surrounding him were the Shepherds, all of them except for Sully embarrassed from their current state or just plain angry.

An announcer in the stands shouted. "Although their combat history is unknown and have no accomplishments to boast of, the East-Khan has personally selected them to be her Champions! Khan Flavia has told me that this all female Ylissian Mercenary group are no slouches when it comes to combat. Enter the East's champions! Chrome! Robin! Frederika! Stahel! Luka! And Sully!" The shepherds raised their arms in a salute as thunderous applause came from the east side of the arena.

The announcer shouted once more. "And from the West, there comes... The Magicians of Flames and lighting, Fox and Wolf! The Axemen who cleared the forest surrounding Lake Aurora in less than two weeks, Seth, Roland, Cheney, and Oliver! The twin knights with skills of the lance envied by many in the realm, Beowulf and Wiegraf! And last but not least, Marth! The mysterious swordsman who's feats are unknown, but supposedly triumphed over Lon-qu, the former champion! But enough with the boasts! Let the battle begin!"

And so one of the most famous battles in Arena Ferox was about to begin. To the people of Ferox, this was the first battle that (Unknowingly to the common Feroxian people) involved foreign royalty, the battle which made Ferox believe Ylisse was full of warrior women, and the battle which shattered thousands of years of the tradition of one on one combat in the khannate tournament.

For Ylisse? This would forever be known as the epic battle of the cross dressers.

* * *

_Background events_

_-Sully/Stahl Support rank C_

_-Luso/Frederick Support rank C_

-_Robin/Chrom Support rank C_


	11. Two Falchions, and Robin

**Anyone can train to be a gladiator. What marks you out is having the mindset of a champion.**

**Manu Bennett**

* * *

"And what's this! Luka is coming around and... Oh Naga! Roland is down!"

The announcer shrieked as Luso stabbed the fighter in the back.  
The axe man collapsed to his knees, and glanced fearfully behind him. Stahl was towering over him, sword already stained with blood and Luso was behind him sword over head.  
"I surrender." Roland groaned, dragging himself towards the edge of the arena. A cleric raised her staff and warped the injured to the upper balcony where three others raised staves and cured the fighter's wounds while trainees in the Ferox's magic academy watched, fascinated.  
"Two down, six to go." Luso said, flicking the blood off his sword.  
Stahl nodded in acknowledgement, removing a sandwich from under his enlarged chest plate and munched on it while waiting for orders.  
On the opposite side of the arena, the crowd roared in surprise as Robin drew his(her?) bronze sword and jumped Seth.  
The axeman, expecting to fight a mage screamed in agony at the tactician's savagery, while Sully approached, her lance prepared to shish-kebab the poor sucker. After seeing the cavalier, the second fighter raised his index finger in surrender. The cleric once again warped the man into the upper deck.  
"Everyone back up and heal up! Two more coming from the left!" Robin shouted waving the Shepherds back, as Frederick stabbed a magician-Wolf- in the chest with his lance. The magician screamed as Frederick rode back, still attached to the weapon.  
Shuttering at the blood, Luso wiped his sword in a most un-lady like manner on his sleeve. Hell, he wasn't wearing this armor again right?  
"And look! The twin knights of the west are moving in! No more two on one fights! Can these Ylissians handle them?" The announcer roared as Beowulf and Wigraf charged forward, lances out. "Luka! Stahel! Leave these two to me and Fredericka! Go together to the far right and get the remaining axemen!" Robin waved his hands and a pair of lightning bolts slammed into Beowulf's side. Still coming, the knight bum rushed Sully knocking her off her horse and smashing her against the arena wall.  
"God damn their eyes! Sorry... I have to retreat." The knight mumbled raising her hand in a symbol for surrender.  
"Sully!" Luso shouted in alarm. "Is she going to be all right?"  
"She'll be fine." Stahl said. "The Feroxians have great clerics. A dead warrior can't fight you know, and the sheer number of fights amongst themselves allows for a lot of practice."  
"She'll be in better condition then you if you don't start moving!" Robin roared as he dodged a lance. "Start fighting already!"  
"We best hurry." Luso said. "Give me a hand." The mercenary grunted as Stahl pulled him on top of the horse.  
Both men rode forward quickly towards the third axeman. "I've got you." Stahl murmured as Luso leaped off.  
"Alright." Luso drew his sword. "What was your name again?"  
The axeman blocked the sword stroke with the heavy side of his axe. "Oliver! And even if it's two on one I can defeat you!"  
The heavy stroke of his axe slammed into Luso's left shoulder snapping the bone underneath.  
-Hell!  
Luso collapsed to his knees as Oliver took a step back. And then he struck again, a blow that Luso barely managed to dodge by scrambling to the right.  
"Pah! Ylissian wench stand and fight!" Oliver roared.  
"Don't underestimate me, and don't call me wench!"  
Luso spun quickly and slashed Oliver across the chest while Stahl circled around the fighter and stabbed him from the back.  
"And Luka and Stahel double teamed Oliver! The axeman is down!" The announcer screamed as Luso smashed the flat side of his sword against the soldier's temple.  
This really was unfair, no matter how he looked at it.  
The fighter groaned and dragged himself to the offside zone with two heavily bleeding wounds. A cleric in the stands raised her staff and warped the champion out of the battlefield.  
"You need to get that shoulder looked at." Stahl muttered as Luso hastily poured a vulnerary onto the wound. Almost instantaneously scar tissue started to stitch the wound together. "It can wait, until after this battle." Luso said while panting. "I can't feel anything-Adrenaline."  
"Good" Stahl said. "Cause we are ordered to go further up without support."  
"What?"  
"Yup. We're- actually you're running decoy."  
Ignoring every bad feeling in his body Luso nervously ran up to the upper half of the arena. From there, Stahl gave a slight nod and suddenly took a few steps back.  
He had a bad feeling about this. Luso glanced back and forth and carefully drew his sword as a lone boy emerged from the Champions gate and walked towards him.  
("And Marth Finally makes his entrance!" The announcer shouted.)  
If it was anyone else, Luso wouldn't have shuttered.  
The mask was what was memorable, a jet black piece of metal. Twelve thin slits opened up, to allow some light to filter through. It was intimidating. If Marth just waved his cape, and shouted, I am the night! He probably would have bolted. Instead, the swordsman decided to say something else.  
"Sir Luso, may I ask why you are wearing that dress?" Marth, drew his sword, and brandished it above his head. It glowed. The sword freaking glowed.  
"It wasn't my idea, it was Robin's."  
"Humph. To stop Lon'qu?"  
"How did you guess?" Luso sighed. "I'm going off on a tangent here by assuming Robin sent me to slow you down until everyone else on your team is dealt with so let's kindly just keep on talking."  
"I would rather not kill you, so try not to jump around so much." Marth said suddenly. "May the best soldier win."  
"Chit." Luso lifted up his sword and clashed with Marth. The two swords grinding against each other as both men tried to overpower one another. In the end, Marth was superior, forcing Luso to leap back or be smashed into the ground.  
"Ugh." Luso muttered as he flailed at Marth with his iron sword. One, two and three strikes, were all quickly parried by Marth's Falchion. Strike four, a quick overhead, actually managed to cut the swordsman's shoulder.  
"Hah." Luso panted. "I actually did something."  
The Falchion gleamed gold and the cut sealed instantly, with none of the scar tissue that came from a vulnerary. Nothing but smooth, pale, skin that many pop stars would die for.  
"Son of a bitch." Luso said as Marth rushed forward. "Oh well, Bring it!"  
With a single slash, Luso's iron sword was cleaved into two, the blade half shattering upon impact, and the hilt subsequently falling off of the handle half.  
The quality difference between their two swords was quite apparent.  
Marth knocked Luso backwards and slashed straight up, tearing through his armor and ripping flesh and bone, a feat no common sword could do easily.  
"How about you surrender?" Marth said, pointing the blade towards Luso's throat.  
Luso's flicked back and forth. Chrom had just finished defeating Wiegraf, and was dueling with Fox. Torrents of fire, and screams of pain were very common. The prince was a bit too busy to help him. If Stahl fought Marth, he would be defeated easily, and Robin was too far away.  
Running it was.  
The mercenary grabbed the side of Falchion with his uninjured hand and forced it away pushing it from his face towards Marth's leg.  
Luso then proceeded to run away, specifically to the corners of the Arena. He pulled out a small flask holding a stank blue liquid Robin called an Elixir. It smelled of detergent.  
The mercenary poured it on his head, and mysteriously all the wounds on his body vanished.  
"I seriously need to learn how to make that." Luso muttered in relief. Marth's footsteps pattered like a ghost behind him. Luso raised his shield high as Marth smashed his sword against it. It was hard to block, and harder to maintain footing. The masked man was both faster and stronger than him, and the second strike proved that conclusively.  
"Ugh!" Luso collapsed backwards, his forehead ringing. All he had to do was not be defeated until Chrom was ready. For some reason unknown, Robin took away the killing edge too, so he had no other weapon. The shield was broken, beyond repair. The only thing left to protect him was a wrist guard and his fleshy organs. He liked his fleshy organs.  
"Sir Luso," Marth said while flicking his sword back. "I'm sorry for doing this, but you will not stop me!"  
The mercenary fell backwards against the arena wall, his armor slashed to pieces. Pain shot through his entire body, and he was almost at the verge of begging for help. But Robin did not give the signal for him to removed from the battlefield, and so he remained. He was bloody, filthy, and beaten to an inch to his life.

The only saving grace was he heard the announcer cry. "Oh my god! Chrome has defeated Fox! It's a miracle!"

It had worked.  
Marth recoiled in horror as he saw Chrom approach, in a extremely provocative dress step over Fox's prone form. Chrom's Falchion was soaked in blood, and the crimson liquid stained the white lace that made up the fringe.  
"Fa-Fa- Fa..." The champion stuttered as Chrom walked slowly towards him.  
Hey! Marth can't English!  
"Where did you get that?" Chrom said while gesturing towards Marth's Falchion. The two blades were identical, every dent, and scrape the same.  
The prince let out a throaty yell, as he charged at the swordsman. The twin blades clashing against each other in a cascade of blows. "Who taught you to fight like that!" Chrom shouted. "Tell me!"  
"My Father!" Marth replied as he attempted to slash across Chrom's shoulder.  
"Then tell me." Chrom said, blocking the sword with his own. "Who is your father?"  
"I've said enough today." Marth muttered, looking at Chrom's legs.  
"You've done nothing but good to my sister." Chrom said. "And I am in your debt. It is not my place to push for answers, no matter how much I want them. But now, I fight for Ylisse and cannot and will not lose. I swear not to shame you."  
"Such youthful arrogance! May the best soldier win!"  
"I intend to." Robin said, slowly approaching behind Marth.  
"Two on one is hardly fair." Marth growled while flicking his sword back.  
"You had plenty of time to pair up with someone and fight as a team." Robin said with a smile. "Though if you want to appeal to the referees that is your choice."  
Chrom stepped back as Robin raised his palm and threw a pair of lightning bolts. The first flew past the soldier and struck a pillar embedded in the arena. The second smashed Marth in the chest knocking him back.  
"Guh!"  
"Chrom! Draw your rapier!" Robin muttered he switched to his bronze sword. "Stay calm, I've got you."  
The prince nodded and drew the slender weapon. With a rush forward, Chrom lunged forward and stabbed Marth in the shoulder.  
"Gotcha!" Robin smirked as his weapon smashed into Marth's slender arm, forcing the young man to drop his sword.  
"I submit." The boy said when he saw two swords pointed at his throat.  
"Its over." Chrom sighed in relief. "I'm getting out of this dress and into my regular clothes. In the end it was all for naught, we didn't even fight Lon'qu."  
"Well, the dress did seem to distract Marth a bit." Robin laughed, as he leaned forward and poured an extra vulnerary onto Marth's cuts, especially his shoulder. "Do you have a crush on Chrom?" He bantered, with a terrifying glint in his eye.  
Marth shivered slightly as Robin picked him up. "That would be disturbing." The boy said. "And let go of me, I'm have to go."  
Robin sighed, and let go. Chrom threw Luso over his shoulder to take to Lissa, while Stahl and Frederick left to go check up on Sully-after a wardrobe change.  
"All's well that ends well, let's go meet with Flavia." Robin said with a grin.

* * *

"So now that we've got our alliance is it back to Ylisse?" Luso muttered, tightening the bandages covering his body.  
"Yeah," Robin said. "Just a few days until we go. Luso, can I ask you a question?"  
"Sure, shoot. Just pass me that vulnerary on the other side of the room."  
Robin threw the bottle, which Luso caught quite easily. His hand eye coordination was far better in Ylisse then on earth.  
"So tell me the problem." Luso said as he poured the solution on his chest.  
"You know, among the Shepherds, you are one of the few people who I feel slightly closer to then anyone besides Chrom. So I would like you not to repeat this to anyone else."  
"Sure." Luso said. "So what is it? Love problems?"  
"A crush, infatuation."  
"I see." Luso looked away. "I'd just like to say, I am not the person to talk to for advice."  
"Fair enough, It isn't really for advice but a confession."  
"Eh? So what is it?" Luso at this point had dropped the bottle and was staring at Robin. This seemed like a bad story. Hell, a bad Yaoi Story, like the one Luke once slipped into his folder when he wasn't looking. It took a long time to explain to the teacher.  
"I'm gay."  
Luso sighed and picked the bottle up again. "I'd never had guessed," Luso said. "So that's why you came up with the crossdressing, and all those strategy meeting which you kept -Chrom- after. There never was any strategy right? I was wondering why the table creaked. Tell me how did you seduce him so quickly? Or was it the other way around?"  
"Eh?!" Robin blushed widely. "Hell no! It isn't Chrom!"  
Wait.  
He was in an empty room with Robin.  
Robin had just confessed to be gay.  
He was a he, as in he was male, the same gender as him.  
Luso leaped out of bed and slowly backed into a corner. "Robin, as much as I like you as a friend, I'm just going to say that I'm straight. There's nothing wrong with you liking sausages over tacos, as long as it isn't -er, my sausage."  
Robin seemed to be even angrier then ever before.  
"What? You idiot! Its not you! Its Marth you jerk!"  
The mercenary stared blankly at Robin before slowly sitting back down. Luso rubbed his hands down his shirt and felt the scars, Marth's sword left on him. One of the scratches just two inches away from the Aum crystal. "I didn't know we knew another guy named Marth?"  
"No you idiot we only know one guy named Marth! The guy I like is Marth!"  
" -'s friend right?"  
"No it's Marth! And I have no idea how to tell him! He vanishes after every meeting, and I can't find him! "  
Luso sighed and stared at his feet. "I don't know anything, Robin, about the courtship of men, so the only thing I can say is that confessions generally work if you bring flowers. But since flowers rot quickly, get Chocolates and just keep them around. If you don't see him around, then at least you got food."  
"I suppose so. Am I strange?"  
"Very. You're a genius in strategy, amnesiac, and terrifying in battle. The homosexuality has nothing to do with anything." Luso clapped Robin on the back. "When you see him, grab his shoulder and confess right there. Best of luck to you in all your prospects."  
"Thanks." Robin said with a nod. He left the room, and walked off to the sweet store.  
"Now just to sleep, sleep before the trip back to the barracks." Luso said with a groan. "Now that I think about it, I need a new sword. And Chocolate. Lots of it."

* * *

_Sorry about the slow update. Pokemon Y slowed me down a lot(I don't actually play Pokemon to battle, just farm for berries. Right now I have about three hundred Sitrus berries and twenty berry trees currently growing. Now that I think about it, I should have bought harvest moon). And School. And NanoWrimo Prep. God, If you thought this was slow, wait till Nano actually starts._

_Anyways, on a side note I actually made it all the way to the Mila tree in awakening on Lunatic, with no DLC except for Champions of Yore pack one to recruit Marth. The actual one. So woohoo! _

_Review! And from now on, I'll respond to reviews down below. Consider that incentive._


End file.
